My mind never stops....I mean like I cannot stop thinking for one second, my brain just keeps going and i'm stressing and thinking about my job (very stressful and high pressure) my marriage (also very stressful) whatever i have to do....I go over everything in my mind multiple times, tell myself to make lists, make lists.......even something simple like stopping for coffee, i tell myself in my head over and over on the way, practice in my head how to say it....I'm not usually like this.
i got a massage on Sunday and had to literally tell myself over and over to relax and focus on what she was doing so my brain wouldn't go off into overthinking....I try to go to bed....i used to pass right out at night, now i just lie there...I can't turn the tv off bc i think too much. then I wake up around 4 and I'm done, can't go back to sleep because i start thinking and i can't relax again...I see my therapist again thursday but this is getting ridiculous...And depressed at the same time, so when I think about things I start to cry half the time, so it's even worse.

jadedmoonbeam!
I totally overthink things (just ask my BF!) and am huge on the list-making. Like you did during the massage, it's good to try to focus to keeping your mind in the present. I rarely have trouble falling asleep (and don't have tv, so that's not an issue), but know what you mean about waking up to thoughts whirling around and not being able to continue sleep.
Again, like during the massage, having to keep bringing yourself into the present can take some doing. It's not as if you can tell yourself once and voila! It takes practice, and that's ok.
Hope your visit with your T goes well. Keep us posted, ok?

[sugahorse1]

You need to keep your mind occupied with mind-numbing stuff- I play arcade games on my computer, watch stand-up comedy on TV, or do Sudoku. The last is my best option. It keeps my brain busy, but not with those terrible thoughts going round and round

[MissMay1977]

I get those racing thoughts at night to. I try to acknowledge them and pretend that each though drifts away on a cloud. I also use sleep music which helps me to relax and sometimes I meditate. I hope the thoughts end soon!

[laur88]

Over-thinking is my specialty! Keeps me up at night, keeps me from focusing on my work, keeps me from focusing on what people are saying to me... Very annoying. I would most definitely talk to your therapist as it seems that it's becoming a big problem for you! Hope it gets better soon

[E1234567]

I'm sorry, but your post made me think of an old story I read. I'm glad that I was able to find it on the internet:
____________________________

It started out innocently enough. I began to think at parties now and then to loosen up. Inevitably though, one thought led to another, and soon I was more than just a social thinker.
I began to think alone - "to relax," I told myself - but I knew it wasn't true. Thinking became more and more important to me, and finally I was thinking all the time.
I began to think on the job. I knew that thinking and employment don't mix, but I couldn't stop myself. I began to avoid friends at lunchtime so I could read writings of Plato, Saint Augustine of Hippo, Jesus Christ, and Aristotle. I would return to the office dizzied and confused, asking, "What is it exactly we are doing here?"
Things weren't going so great at home either. One evening I had turned off the TV and asked my wife about the meaning of life. She spent that night at her mother's.
I soon had a reputation as a heavy thinker. One day the boss called me in. He said, "Skippy, I like you, and it hurts me to say this, but your thinking has become a real problem. If you don't stop thinking on the job, you'll have to find another job." This gave me a lot to think about.
I came home early after my conversation with the boss. "Honey, " I confessed, "I've been thinking..." "I know you've been thinking," she said, "and I want a divorce!" "But Honey, surely it's not that serious." "It is serious," she said, lower lip aquiver. "You think as much as college professors, and college professors don't make any money, so if you keep on thinking we won't have any money!" "That's a faulty syllogism," I said impatiently, and she began to cry. I'd had enough. "I'm going to the library," I snarled as I stomped out the door.
I headed for the library, in the mood for Clinton's latest book "Family Morals in America". Listening to a PBS station on the radio, I roared into the parking lot and ran up to the big glass doors... they didn't open. The library was closed. Later, I realized that a Higher Power was looking out for me that night. As I sank to the ground clawing at the unfeeling glass, whimpering for Zarathustra, a poster caught my eye. "Friend, is heavy thinking ruining your life?" it asked. You probably recognize that line. It comes from the standard Thinker's Anonymous poster.
Which is why I am what I am today: a recovering thinker. I never miss a TA meeting. At each meeting we watch a non-educational video; last week it was "Jerry Spinger" talking about the song "I'm bad" by Michael Jacks. Then we share experiences about how we avoided thinking since the last meeting. Life just seemed .. more bland .. without purpose or meaning, somehow, as soon as I stopped thinking, and avoided thoughts about the meaning of life and my future. I still have my job, and things are a lot better at home and the office. Now I stare for hours at the T.V. and receive my daily dose of brainwashing instead of contemplating the mysteries of life.
Have you joined Thinker's Anonymous yet?

Originally Posted by E1234567

I'm sorry, but your post made me think of an old story I read. I'm glad that I was able to find it on the internet:
____________________________

It started out innocently enough. I began to think at parties now and then to loosen up. Inevitably though, one thought led to another, and soon I was more than just a social thinker.
I began to think alone - "to relax," I told myself - but I knew it wasn't true. Thinking became more and more important to me, and finally I was thinking all the time.
I began to think on the job. I knew that thinking and employment don't mix, but I couldn't stop myself. I began to avoid friends at lunchtime so I could read writings of Plato, Saint Augustine of Hippo, Jesus Christ, and Aristotle. I would return to the office dizzied and confused, asking, "What is it exactly we are doing here?"
Things weren't going so great at home either. One evening I had turned off the TV and asked my wife about the meaning of life. She spent that night at her mother's.
I soon had a reputation as a heavy thinker. One day the boss called me in. He said, "Skippy, I like you, and it hurts me to say this, but your thinking has become a real problem. If you don't stop thinking on the job, you'll have to find another job." This gave me a lot to think about.
I came home early after my conversation with the boss. "Honey, " I confessed, "I've been thinking..." "I know you've been thinking," she said, "and I want a divorce!" "But Honey, surely it's not that serious." "It is serious," she said, lower lip aquiver. "You think as much as college professors, and college professors don't make any money, so if you keep on thinking we won't have any money!" "That's a faulty syllogism," I said impatiently, and she began to cry. I'd had enough. "I'm going to the library," I snarled as I stomped out the door.
I headed for the library, in the mood for Clinton's latest book "Family Morals in America". Listening to a PBS station on the radio, I roared into the parking lot and ran up to the big glass doors... they didn't open. The library was closed. Later, I realized that a Higher Power was looking out for me that night. As I sank to the ground clawing at the unfeeling glass, whimpering for Zarathustra, a poster caught my eye. "Friend, is heavy thinking ruining your life?" it asked. You probably recognize that line. It comes from the standard Thinker's Anonymous poster.
Which is why I am what I am today: a recovering thinker. I never miss a TA meeting. At each meeting we watch a non-educational video; last week it was "Jerry Spinger" talking about the song "I'm bad" by Michael Jacks. Then we share experiences about how we avoided thinking since the last meeting. Life just seemed .. more bland .. without purpose or meaning, somehow, as soon as I stopped thinking, and avoided thoughts about the meaning of life and my future. I still have my job, and things are a lot better at home and the office. Now I stare for hours at the T.V. and receive my daily dose of brainwashing instead of contemplating the mysteries of life.
Have you joined Thinker's Anonymous yet?

that made me laugh, which I desperately needed today. thank you so much for posting it.

sugahorse - I play hours of Zuma Blitz and Bejeweled Blitz. I play till my eyes hurt. I keep the tv on all the time now, which is so not like me...i ususally like the quiet...I may bring my ipod to bed tonight

MissMay - what kind of sleep music do you use?

[kitty004567]

OOh.... I got some wonderful sleep music on itunes. It's by Dr. Jeffery Thompson, he's got a bunch of cd's like Delta Sleep and such. The cool thing is that they have sounds in them that your brain locks onto. It helps your body relax and get into delta sleep so your body can recover from the day. My favorite is "soothing music for sleep."