I'm stressed out and when I try to go to sleep I can't shut off my thoughts. What should I do?

When I have trouble sleeping, I try to think of things that make me happy. Or meditation. But reading a good book is good also.

I know this sounds funny but i have the problem, its probably just a placebo but i use the sleep lotion from bath and body, if you don't have that i normally just listen to meditation videos there are a few on here actually!

Some times listening to music helps, writing down what's bothering you helps, and focusing on one thing that will make you happy and doing just that the next day so you have something to look forward to. The more you think about keep your mind busy you will drift off to sleep and it will disappear.

Try a cup of chamomile tea....or.try meditation. Simply focus on your breath..and how you are breathing..this will relax you. Nothing else exists except for your breath...

this is something i used to struggle with. i tend to tence up my body and relax and do that a few times and concentrating on my breathing, as your breathing out whisper the letter R. this sounds crazy but you concentrate so much on what your doing it makes you shut off, i also tend to think of a story in my head or listen to music. i also find ASMR to be quite relaxing to go to sleep to, as you concentrate on the soothing whispering or tapping .

I suggest doing something you enjoy. Try reading a book, listening to music or something like that.

Turn off electronics 2 hours before you go to bed, it will help you relax because light on your eyes usually keeps you up longer. You can also try listening to some soft, mellow, relaxing music, or reading a boring book.

down load the app "calm" it works, it has all kinds of relaxing sounds and theres a women who calms you.

This is going to sound really morbid, but what I do is pretend I'm a dead body in a movie, like a murder has happened. So keep your breathing down, so the cameras don't pick it up. What this does is slow your heart rate down, which in turn calms down your brain. Hoped that helped!

Make your sleeping environment relaxing and comfortable. Make sure all lights are off and you have no distractions like electronics near you. Wind down with something that works for you, like reading before bed and drinking hot tea. If you believe this is because stress, try talking about your feelings with somebody and find coping mechanisms for stress!