How to clear your mind: 6 tips to calm a busy head

You're finally sitting on the sofa, but in your head everything keeps going. The email you still need to send, this afternoon's conversation, the shopping for tomorrow. If you want to know how to clear your mind, it helps not to try harder to stop thinking, but to give your thoughts a place and bring your attention to your body for a while.

In this article you'll read why a busy head finds it so hard to go quiet and which simple things help to bring it to rest.

Why does your head keep going?

On a busy day, your body is in a kind of "on" mode: alert, a little tense, ready to react. That's useful while you're busy. But that mode doesn't switch off by itself as soon as you sit down. Your body is still winding down, and your thoughts keep spinning along with it.

On top of that, your head likes to hold on to unfinished things. Everything that still needs doing keeps coming back, precisely because you don't want to forget it. Only when things go quiet, on the sofa or in bed, do all those thoughts get space.

Telling yourself that you have to relax now often doesn't work very well for that reason. A better approach: park your thoughts and help your body come out of "on" mode.

1. How to clear your mind on paper: the brain dump

A brain dump is a writing exercise where you put everything that's in your head down on paper: tasks, worries, ideas and loose thoughts, with no order and no nice sentences. It takes five to ten minutes. Afterwards, you pick out what really needs doing and put the rest aside. Many people notice their head gets quieter as soon as it's on paper.

1. Grab a pen and paper. A notebook works better than your phone, with all its messages.
2. Set a timer for five to ten minutes. That keeps it manageable.
3. Write down everything that comes up. Tasks, worries, ideas, loose fragments. Even "I don't know where to start" can go on the list.
4. Read it through once afterwards. Underline what really needs doing tomorrow.
5. Put the paper away. Your thoughts are written down somewhere. You don't have to hold on to them any more.

A handy variation for the evening is a short to-do list for tomorrow. In a small study from Baylor University, young adults who spent five minutes before bed writing a to-do list for the coming days fell asleep faster than participants who wrote about what they had already done. It was a small group, but the idea is easy to recognise.

2. A set time for thinking instead of all day long

Some thoughts aren't tasks but worries. You can't tick those off, but you can give them a fixed place in your day, for example fifteen minutes at the end of the afternoon: your worry time.

• Does a worry come up during the day? Jot down a few words about it and tell yourself: I'll think about that later.
• At your set time, take out your list and think about it on purpose.
• Choose a time that isn't right before bed.
• Close your worry time with something else, like a walk or cooking.

Talking can help too. A worry you say out loud to someone you trust often becomes smaller and easier to oversee. You don't need to have a solution straight away: sometimes it's enough that someone is listening.

Do you notice your thoughts mostly circling around the same worries, or that there's anxiety underneath? Then read more about worrying, anxiety and inner restlessness.

3. Out of your head and into your body: moving and breathing

It's hard to quiet your head with your head. What often works better is shifting your attention to your body. Movement is one of the simplest ways to do that.

• Go for a short walk. Ten minutes outside, without your phone in your hand, is already enough to switch off for a while.
• Do something with your hands. Washing up or folding laundry gives your head something simple to focus on.
• Shake it out. Briefly shaking out your arms, shoulders and legs helps many people feel tension ease.

Your breathing can help too. Breathe in calmly through your nose and breathe out for longer than you breathe in, for example four counts in and six counts out. Do this for a few minutes, without forcing it. If you like, place a hand on your tummy so you can feel your breath moving. You'll find more exercises in grounding: coming back to the here and now and in 7 simple relaxation exercises, such as a body scan.

It's hard to quiet your head with your head.

4. A short break from screens

A screen feels like relaxation, but mostly it gives your head new input: messages, news, videos. Exactly what a busy head doesn't need. Even a short break makes a difference.

• Leave your phone in another room for ten minutes.
• Turn off notifications for a while, so nothing comes in while you sit for a moment.

5. Something to hold on to

Sometimes it helps to literally have something in your hands: a warm mug of tea, a soft cushion. Your hands have something to hold, and your attention goes to what you feel instead of what you think.

A weighted stuffed animal can help with that. A Hugsback weighs 2 kg and is about 45 cm tall, filled with fine glass beads spread throughout the whole body. Lay it on your lap or against your tummy and feel the weight. Many people experience that soft, even pressure as a calm hug: something that's simply there and asks nothing of you.

Feel free to combine them into a regular ten-minute evening moment:

1. Five minutes of brain dump or a list for tomorrow.
2. Paper away, phone in another room.
3. Five minutes on the sofa with the weighted plush toy on your lap, breathing out slowly.

Many people experience that soft, even pressure as a calm hug: something that's simply there and asks nothing of you.

6. Calming your mind before bed

A busy head can get especially loud in bed. A few things that help many people:

• Do your brain dump or to-do list before you go to bed, not in bed.
• Keep a notebook next to your bed. If something still comes up, write it down in a few words and leave it there.
• Still awake after about half an hour? Get up for a while, sit somewhere quiet with dimmed lights and go back when you feel sleepy.

You'll find more tips for the evening and night in the article about falling asleep more easily as an adult. If a busy head keeps you from sleeping for weeks, or you're getting stuck during the day, talk to your GP or doctor about it.

Still going round in circles? Then read how to stop overthinking and what you can do when you can't sleep.

Frequently asked questions

How do you clear your mind?

Write down everything that's in your head, make a short list for tomorrow and then bring your attention to your body, for example with a walk or by breathing out slowly.

Why does my head feel so full?

Often your body is still switched on after a busy day, and your head holds on to everything that still needs doing. When things go quiet, those thoughts get space.

How can I calm my mind when I can't sleep?

Briefly write the thought down in a notebook next to your bed and breathe out for longer than you breathe in for a few minutes.

What is a brain dump?

A writing exercise where you spend five to ten minutes writing down everything that's in your head, in no particular order. Afterwards, you pick out what really needs doing. Your thoughts are then written down somewhere, so you don't have to hold on to them any more.

Can a weighted stuffed animal help with a busy head?

It won't make your thoughts disappear, but many people experience the weight on their lap as a calm anchor that brings their attention from their head to their body.

Finally

A busy head is part of busy days. You don't have to clear it all at once. Give your thoughts a place on paper, allow your body a few quiet minutes and pick up something soft to hold. Also read how to deal with stress and tension in your body, or find small moments of calm for every day.