Thinking of thoughts

LordSplodge said:
Huddy, go read a book on mindfulness and mindful meditation. That should answer your question.
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This. Focusing on your breathing works as an anchor, whenever your mind wanders just go back to thinking about your breathing. I found it scary at first when the calmness settles over you but you soon get used to it, just takes practice.
 
godinman said:
I don't know. But my dad swears saying 'the' repeatedly in his head makes him go to sleep. He saw it on BBC breakfast, apparently it stops you thinking about things.
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My mum told me the exact same thing years ago! I try it now and then but not sure if it makes any difference as I can fall asleep really easily anyway.
 
i find it impossible. Takes me hours to sleep because im always thinking of something, whether its something ive done that day or doing tomorrow it plays continuously in my head!!
 
I often zone out and think of vast emptiness. Detaching my brain from reality is soothing, and it doesn't need drugs!
 
Mik3 said:
I don't see how its possible, just by thinking of nothing your creating something and you still see nothing even when your eyes are shut. :confused:
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When those "somethings" flit into your mind dont fight them - e.g. if i say to you repeatedly "dont think about pink arthritic sheep" then thats all you can do is think about it.

Try thinking of a space e.g. a circle. Create the lines and the space in the circle. Theres nothing inside the circle it just is. It can be a small circle to start off. All the object and somethings that are in your mind keep outside the circle. STILL think about those things but kinda on the periphery. How do you do that? Expand the circle of nothingness so your mind is concentrating more on that than on the somethings. ie it gets bigger and the somethings get smaller.

Obviously your mind will continue to flirt onto whatever object but as you focus more on the circle it will do it less. Its hard thinking about nothing though so whats in the circle?

Perhaps vast empty black? orVisualize empty space like in star wars when they travel moving past the stars. ;)

Usually if theres nothing to hold your attention its v easy to fall asleep here soo you want to be able to "pin" your attentional state onto something which requires very little attention. (usually you fall asleep when you do that) so the important reinforcement is the pin.

Its a bit like....when you hammer a nail in a wall to hold up a picture you are focused on that ok but when the nail is in the wall and the picture is hanging...you're no longer focused on hanging the picture on the wall. Its already pinned to the wall.
 
Any awareness of external stimuli is due to a thought. To think of nothing you'd have to somehow switch off all of your sensory receptors among other things, which if I'm not mistaken is impossible if you want to stay alive afterwards. Even during sleep random neurons are firing all the time.

You are always thinking of something, even during unconsciousness. Your level of awareness might decrease but you'll never stop thinking.
 
Not sure what meditation is but sometimes I'll blank for a moment, but then the thought pops in to your head that you're thinking of nothing. Maybe 6 seconds max of nothing, not often, and only when very content.
 
If I'm having a restless night and my mind keeps going round and round then I try to focus on a blank white wall in my mind.

If anything else comes in, ignore and just keep focusing on the white wall.

It's weird usually I can fall asleep really easy but when I get an idea in my head I can spend the whole night going over it. So now I try to focus on "nothingness" as it were so I can get some sleep.

Doesn't always work though, sometimes I start thinking so much about nothingness that it in turn keeps me up!
 
Admiral Huddy said:
Is it possible to actually think of nothing?

Some people I know , including my Mrs, claim they regularly think of nothing which makes them relax and ultimately sleep better or are they just confusing this with being lost in thought which isn't the same?

Many people read books, listen to music etc which distracts them from their daily routine helping them relax and promoting better sleep.

The reason I ask is that i can't comprehend not thinking. It's like breathing, it's involuntary but what's intriguing is that how some people can just switch off and others can't?

Thoughts on this matter?
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/wave :) I always think, drives me crazy but I do it anyway! Everything and all the time; bad I know
 
think of a black space or a pitch black night.

That's pretty much nothing... in my book.
 
I can never think of nothing if I'm conscious, I just can't. Something will always be going through my mind.
 
Well last night I really tried thinking of nothing but for some strange reason I just kept seeing girls knockers..... so now i'm gonna think of nothing more often, it was lovely. he,he.
 
Bunka said:
Have you garnered that from the following conversation?

Huddy: "What you thinking about?"
Huddy's O/H: "nothing"

She's clearly thinking about filth or something uber weird that she thinks would make you judge her. :p

If I get that response I dig deeper and annoy the Mrs until she tells me. :D
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Good thinking, she has been reading those damn book recently. Although i have tried the "dig deeper" tactic in past, it doesn't always bode well :p

JodieO said:
/wave :) I always think, drives me crazy but I do it anyway! Everything and all the time; bad I know
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Well hello :)

I was just thinking the other day where you were :p
 
My brain used to be a constant train of thought that many here describe. It can make you quite wound up.

I have mastered the art of thinking of nothing at all. It's real, and relaxing.
 
I imagine that what happens if you literally think of nothing would be like having a general anesthetic.. the time would probably just disappear... dunno
 
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