Put Your Face in Cold Water
  • This technique is known as the temperature TIPP skill of dialectical behavioral therapy. 
  • In order to calm down your thoughts, try holding your breath and putting your face in a bowl of cold water or holding a cold pack on your eyes and cheeks for at least 30 seconds.
  • This will cue your mammalian diving reflex, which causes our body chemistry to change—heart rate drops down immediately and the “rest and digest” nervous system is activated to prompt a relaxation response
  • For a demonstration of this skill, click here
Try Meditating
  • The 9-0 meditation technique can be helpful. Breathe in deeply and breathe out slowly, saying in your mind the number 9. On the next breath out, say 8; next breath out, say 7, and so on until 0. Then, start over, but this time start with 8 as you breathe out, followed by 7, and so on until 0. Keep focusing on the numbers. Continue this until you fall asleep. 
Focus On The Bodily Sensation of the Rumination
  • How does the rumination make your body feel? Tight? Heavy? Is a particular area of your body more affected than another area? 
Reassure Yourself
  • Ruminating at night is often just “middle-of-the-night-worries.” In the morning you will usually think and feel differently.
If the Rumination Does Not Stop
  • If it is solvable, solve it. If it is insolvable, think about what the very worst outcome you can imagine would be, and imagine coping ahead with that catastrophe.