The reason those thoughts keep our brains active long into the night is usually because we feel some aspect of our life is out of our control.
...journaling is a powerful way to empty your mind of stress.
When you lie in bed thinking for long periods of time, you teach your brain that this behavior is OK. As a result, you may start to automatically go into “thinking” mode rather than “sleeping” mode when you lie down. To break this connection, don’t try to fall asleep in bed for longer than 10–20 minutes. If you pass this threshold, get up, go into another room, and do something relaxing like reading or meditating until you feel sleepy again. Repeat this process as many times as necessary.
In her book Thrive, Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington explained how researchers from the University of Minnesota and the University of Florida found that writing down a list of positive events at the close of a day—and why those events made us happy—lowers stress levels and gives us a greater sense of calm at night.
Additionally, writing lets you expel all those little ideas floating through your mind and keeping you up at night. By simply removing the thoughts from your head and putting them on paper, they’re less likely to pop up as you’re trying to drift off.