A friend says their mind races the moment they get into bed and they can't fall asleep. What would you suggest they try?

B Natural answer

I’d probably tell them to stop trying to force sleep and focus on lowering the noise first. One thing that helps is to get it out of your head before bed: make a quick list of worries, tasks, or random thoughts so they’re not carrying all of it into the pillow. Then I’d build a simple gentle wind-down routine with the same order each night, like shower, low light, reading, and no work messages. If the mind still feels busy, they could try box breathing for a few minutes, because it gives the brain something steady to follow. I’d also keep the room cool and avoid checking the clock, since that just adds pressure. Most people sleep better once the body gets a clear, repeatable signal that it’s time to slow down.

Key phrases in this answer

• get it out of your head — write or say thoughts so they stop looping“If you’re worried about tomorrow, get it out of your head and write it down.”
• gentle wind-down routine — a soft, relaxing bedtime sequence“She follows a gentle wind-down routine with tea, reading, and no screens.”
• box breathing — breathing in equal counts“Box breathing helps me slow down when my mind starts racing.”
• keep a notepad by the bed — write thoughts down at night“I keep a notepad by the bed so I can jot down ideas before I forget them.”
• five-minute reset — a short calming break“I did a five-minute reset before bed and felt much calmer.”
• brain dump — a fast write-out of thoughts“I did a brain dump before bed and stopped thinking about work.”