It’s hard to fall asleep when you can’t quiet down your racing thoughts. You all may know what it’s like. So, it’s better to gently turn off an overactive brain before your head hits the pillow.

Apart from various stimulants, like caffeine and alcohol, there are certain activities that can also contribute to trouble sleeping and uneasy dreams. For instance, if you start figuring out riddles, playing chess or doing puzzles before bedtime, your brain will refuse to shut off, and you’ll end up staying up late.

The same goes for creative activities. Of course, they tend to humor us and help reduce stress and anxiety during the day. But their effect is quite the opposite if we talk about the type of rest we need for a sweet surrender. We don’t usually notice it, but these types of activities require a lot of effort from our brain. So, drawing, writing or even playing a musical instrument keep our brain cells very much engaged. And you’ll need quite some time to help yourself along to the Land of Nod afterwards.

That’s why it’s better to quiet your mind and calm your imagination before bedtime. As well as it’s useful to deal with the things that may cause strong emotions two hours before you drift off to sleep.

Instead try to unwind with the help of yoga or meditation practices. You can also read to promote deep relaxation. A good book significantly reduces stress levels. When we read a story, we can be someplace else for a change leaving our own problems behind.

Deep breathing, yoga and reading are the best pre-bed activities imaginable. They help us relax muscles, slow down breathing and lower blood pressure. This way we can effectively distract our mind from too much thinking and leave our daily stresses out of the bedroom.