How to Stop Catastrophic Thinking Ruining Your Sleep

If your mind races at night with “what ifs” and worst-case scenarios, you’re not alone. This is one of the main reasons people struggle to sleep.

As a specialist in cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia, I’ve worked with thousands of people who find themselves lying awake at night, trapped in a spiral of catastrophic thinking that feels impossible to control in the moment.

Catastrophic thinking is when your mind automatically jumps to the worst possible outcome. Thoughts like “What if I don’t sleep tonight and can’t focus at work?” or “What if my terrible sleep damages my health?”

In that moment, it can feel as though you’re problem-solving by thinking it through. But in reality, it’s your brain’s safety mechanism — making it feel like there’s a threat. And if your brain thinks there’s any danger, it simply won’t let you drift off, because it’s wired to keep you alert and safe.

This also explains why you can feel exhausted all day, but the moment your head hits the pillow, your mind won’t switch off. Your brain is doing exactly what it’s meant to do: protect you.

The good news? Because you’ve learned to think this way, you can also *unlearn* it.

So, how do you stop a racing mind in the night? And how do you get back to sleep when you wake up?

I’ve created a FREE PDF that walks you through exactly how to manage these thoughts — and how to change your response so you can sleep.

Simply click below to get your copy.