Calm My Racing Mind!
Lying awake at night, staring at the ceiling hour after hour. Thoughts pouring in like an open faucet.
Distracted no matter what I’m doing…can’t focus… my mind is darting everywhere.
If you ever have trouble quieting your mind, here is an exercise to try. The idea is to have a mental place to put all of your thoughts/”to-dos”/worries until you can deal with them, one at a time. You can rest them knowing they’ll be there when you are ready, but you don’t have to deal with all of them at one time, much less at this very moment. It’s a way to helpfully compartmentalize, drawing out to your attention just what you need right in the moment.
Some people make this a physical reality and create a beautiful container in which they put slips of paper with jotted thoughts. They find the act of writing and physically placing them outside of themselves brings more mental release. Go for it!
In either case, read the thought aloud a few times to familiarize yourself before trying it. Have someone read it if possible when you try it or even read it as you go, if needed. Or you can put it into a voice memo app to play back to yourself. You’ll soon get the hang of it.
Before you can do the Container exercise, you need two things: a mental “container” and a “safe place.” This requires two brief visualizations. Get in a relaxed, quiet place for a few minutes. Breathe deeply as you consider these things:
1. Think first of a beautiful container with a one-way lid opening, like a hinged box. Picture it in as much detail as you can. Might be something you have or just something you would like.
2. Then, close your eyes and visualize a ‘safe place.’ What comes to mind? Your home? Your childhood home or grandmother’s place? A favorite place in nature? Being with a certain person?
Pull in all the details of this safe place… what do you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch? Do you see other people or are you alone? Do you see walls or open space? Something beautiful? What color? Smell food or city smells? Farm smells? Perfume? Are you eating anything or tasting the salt of the ocean? What textures are you touching? What’s against your skin? Are you touching the ground or furniture? Sand, grass, etc? Paint as vivid picture as you can.