How to Switch Off and Fall Asleep

March 25, 2024

Does your busy mind stop you from sleeping? Do you want to learn how to switch off and fall asleep? Unlock the secrets to a restful night’s sleep with this guide on how to switch off and fall asleep. Say goodbye to restless nights and hello to waking up feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the day. Follow our simple tips and tricks, including setting up an evening routine, nasal breathing, and learning how to calm that busy mind that has stopped you from sleeping. Find the peaceful sleep you deserve!

Why do we have thoughts at night?

Scientists used to believe that sleep was a state where the brain would switch off and fall asleep, like unplugging a kettle. However, recent research has revealed that one of the main functions of sleep is to help our minds process events and memories. As a result, it is common to experience a busy mind at night that stops us from sleeping as we go to bed. . Later on in the night these busy thoughts usually consist of impressions, stories, and unrelated snippets processed as we fall asleep and during each sleep cycle.

Here are six simple suggestions to help you quieten a busy mind, switch off and fall asleep So if you are fed up with lying there, awake, thinking thought after another, give these tips a go.

1. Identify the type of thoughts stop you from sleeping

Think about the difference between a time when your busy mind stopped you sleeping versus a time when you were relaxed and drifted off to sleep easily.

What are/ were your thoughts about?
How much more relaxed were you then?
What were your days like?
What did you do before gong to bed, both times?
Write down your answers.

What could you do to change your thinking so that you can be more relaxed, switch off and fall asleep?

2. Find An Evening Routine that Works for You

It’s important to establish a good evening routine as this will help you switch off and fall asleep. Most of us have a routine for getting to work and what we do when we arrive at work – like getting coffee, switching on the computer, etc. Routines are great because you do them automatically, without needing to think about every step. If you repeat the same sequence of events each day, after a while, you will start to do it automatically. The less you have to think, the calmer your mind will be. Think back to when you were a child – you probably had a standard evening routine that started with “No, you can’t watch the next programme; it’s time to put your toys away”, and ended with you in bed, feeling sleepy and the light being turned off.

Evening Routines will include some of the following, as they help calm a busy mind that could otherwise stop you sleeping. I have videos and blogs on Here are some common things people do during their evening routines. I have videos and blogs on most of them.most of them:

Hot bath or shower
Gentle night-time yoga and stretches
A herbal or milk-based night-time drink – Try Dale Pinnock’s Bedtime Brew
Read – short stories that are calming and relaxing are ideal
Listening to music. Try Marconi Union’s music. Weightless is designed to help you de-stress, let go of anxiety and sleep. It was rated as one of the world’s most calming pieces of music by the Independent,
Meditation – see Watching Thought below or contact me for details of meditation classes, such as Ascension and the online class MeditationChangesLives.com
The Pink Light Technique
Keep a journal or write a late night mind dump
Keep a Gratitude diary

3. Think about your Breathing

Breathe in and out through your nose slowly, silently, and gently. Practice Alternate Nasal Breathing to stay calm and focused during the day. Use Left Nasal Breathing to switch off and fall asleep. Check out my blogs on breathwork for more information.

How to Benefit from Nasal Breathing

4. Quieten Your Mind

Quietening your mind to help you fall asleep involves letting go of thoughts, emotions, hurts and worries. This also means not allowing your mind to go round and round trying to find that elusive solution to a problem.

Did you know that we think 60,000 to 90,000 thoughts a day and that most are negative? You will be amazed at how much rubbish passes for thought each day. No wonder it can be hard to sleep! This technique will help you start to see your thoughts for what they are.

5. Practice Watching Your Thoughts

You can do this anywhere – it doesn’t have to be a quiet place. Sometimes, the nosier, the better!

Close your eyes, bring your awareness to your hands or another part of your body, and breathe gently. Now, tune your attention to the thoughts that are passing through. Aim to just watch them without changing them or commentating on them. You can count the thoughts or watch them. Eventually, you will stop watching and start identifying with the thought. It seems to be you and telling you something useful. When you notice that you have been off thinking, just come back to your hands and carry on watching the thoughts. You can do this for one minute or one hour! Just do it whenever you remember. You may discover that being the watcher changes your relationship with your thoughts, even those that sound like you. And if you are the watcher, who is the thinker?

Contact me for more information and my meditation classes, and others that teach Watching Thoughts, such as Ascension and the online class MeditationChangesLives.com

5. Letting go of Hurts and Worries

Here are some ideas you can play with that will help you calm a busy mind that is stopping you sleeping. Contact me if you would like to learn more about this.

Throughout your day, imagine putting that thought, worry or feeling into a balloon and letting it float away. It is OK if it comes back – just do it again.
Learn the Pink Light Technique – see my videos and blogs.
Learn the NLP Forgiveness Process – ask me for an audio recording – this it to calm YOUR system.
Imagine you could shrink down that thing or person that is disturbing your sleep, move it further away and turn down the sound.

6. Get Expert Help

If you struggle to with off and fall asleep, it is likely that your mind has got into the habit and—a bad routine—of thinking that bed is the time to go over and over problems, worry, and try to find ‘solutions’. You can see how much it does this and how few solutions it finds. You may also have traumas that are still affecting you. If you’re struggling to fall asleep, try my Sleep Coaching & Therapy program to calm your mind and sleep better.

f you’re interested in discovering more about how to calm a busy mind, don’t hesitate to get in touch . I’m happy to share additional information and answer any questions you may have – sue@suegray.co.uk or 07792 447331