If your mind won't stop racing at night, this grounding trick works surprisingly well - Silicon Canals

"That's how long I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling while my brain played highlight reels of every awkward conversation I'd had that week, mixed with a generous helping of tomorrow's imaginary disasters. If you've ever experienced that special brand of torture where your body is exhausted but your mind is running a marathon, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Your thoughts bounce from work stress to that weird thing you said five years ago, then spiral into worst-case scenarios about your future."

"Then a friend mentioned something called the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique. I'll be honest, I thought it sounded too simple to actually work. But desperation makes you willing to try anything, right? That night, when my mind started its usual sprint, I gave it a shot. Within ten minutes, I was asleep. Not the restless, wake-up-every-hour kind of sleep, but actual, deep, restorative sleep."

Three consecutive nights of sleeplessness involved lying awake while the brain replayed awkward conversations and invented future disasters. Multiple common sleep strategies — counting sheep, progressive muscle relaxation, and sleep stories — failed to induce rest. Trying the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique produced deep, restorative sleep within ten minutes and became a reliable method for interrupting racing thoughts. The technique works for anxiety, stress, and an overactive mind that won’t shut up at bedtime. Nighttime rumination increases because daytime distractions occupy the conscious mind; lying still gives the brain space to process avoided material and a tired prefrontal cortex lets the emotional amygdala dominate.

Read at Silicon Canals