When Your Thoughts Won’t Shut Off: Depression, Anxiety, and Racing Thoughts Explained

If you’ve ever laid in bed exhausted while your mind keeps replaying conversations, worrying about the future, or spiraling into “what if” scenarios, you’re not alone. Racing thoughts are one of the most common — and most distressing — symptoms people experience with depression, anxiety, or both.

For many people, this mental noise is what finally pushes them to seek help. Not because they feel sad all the time, but because they can’t get their mind to slow down. Understanding why this happens — and what actually helps — can be an important first step toward feeling better.

What Are Racing Thoughts?

Racing thoughts are rapid, repetitive, and often intrusive thought patterns that feel hard or impossible to control. They may jump from one topic to another or loop endlessly around the same worry, regret, or fear.

People often describe racing thoughts as:

• “My brain won’t turn off”

• “I’m constantly overthinking everything”

• “I replay conversations over and over”

• “I feel mentally exhausted but can’t rest”

These thoughts aren’t a personal failing or a lack of willpower. They’re a symptom of how the brain processes stress, mood, and emotion.

Depression vs. Anxiety: How Racing Thoughts Show Up Differently

Racing thoughts can occur in both depression and anxiety, but they often feel different.

In Depression

Racing thoughts in depression tend to be:

• Self-critical or hopeless

• Focused on past mistakes or perceived failures

• Centered around guilt, worthlessness, or “what’s wrong with me”

• Slower but relentless — looping rather than jumping

People with depression may not feel physically “keyed up,” but their mind feels stuck in negative rumination.

In Anxiety

Racing thoughts linked to anxiety are often:

• Future-focused

• “What if” driven

• Catastrophic or worst-case oriented

• Accompanied by physical symptoms like tension, restlessness, or a racing heart

Many people experience both, which can make symptoms feel especially overwhelming.

Why Racing Thoughts Often Get Worse at Night

Nighttime is when racing thoughts tend to hit hardest. There are a few reasons for this:

• Fewer distractions: During the day, work, social interaction, and routines occupy your mind. At night, silence leaves space for thoughts to surface.

• Mental fatigue: When you’re tired, your brain has less ability to regulate and filter thoughts.

• Unprocessed emotions: Feelings you’ve pushed aside during the day often emerge when you finally slow down.

• Sleep anxiety: Worrying about not sleeping can actually make racing thoughts worse, creating a frustrating cycle.

This is why insomnia and mood disorders are so closely linked.

When Racing Thoughts Become a Sign of a Larger Mental Health Issue

Occasional overthinking is normal. But racing thoughts may signal a need for professional support when they:

• Happen most days for weeks or months

• Interfere with sleep, work, or relationships

• Feel uncontrollable or overwhelming

• Are accompanied by low mood, loss of interest, or persistent anxiety

• Lead to avoidance, isolation, or emotional exhaustion

At this point, racing thoughts are often part of an underlying depressive or anxiety disorder — not something that will simply “pass on its own.”

What Actually Helps With Racing Thoughts

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but effective treatment often involves a combination of approaches.

Therapy

Talk therapy can help by:

• Identifying thought patterns that fuel rumination

• Teaching skills to interrupt mental spirals

• Addressing underlying stressors or trauma

• Improving emotional regulation

Cognitive-based therapies are especially helpful for racing thoughts.

Psychiatric Care

Medication management can be an important tool when racing thoughts are driven by depression or anxiety that isn’t improving with therapy alone. Adjusting or starting medication can help calm the overactive thought loops that make it hard to function or rest.

Advanced Treatment Options

For individuals with more severe or treatment-resistant depression, advanced options may be considered. These are not first-line treatments, but they can be appropriate when standard approaches haven’t provided enough relief.

Lifestyle and Sleep Support

While not a replacement for treatment, things like consistent sleep schedules, limiting late-night screen time, and stress-reduction strategies can support overall recovery.

You Don’t Have to Live With a Constantly Overactive Mind

Racing thoughts can make even simple moments feel exhausting. Many people assume this is just “how their brain works” or something they need to tolerate. In reality, it’s often a treatable symptom of an underlying mental health condition.

Getting help doesn’t mean something is “wrong” with you. It means your brain is under strain — and support can make a real difference.

Final Thoughts

If racing thoughts are interfering with your sleep, focus, or emotional well-being, professional care can help you understand what’s driving them and how to reduce their impact.

At Aurora Wellness, we provide:

• In-person psychiatric care and advanced depression treatment options in Brooklyn and White Plains

• Telehealth psychiatric care and therapy for individuals throughout New York State

This flexibility allows people to access consistent, personalized mental health care regardless of location or schedule.

Taking the first step toward support can be difficult — but you don’t have to navigate this alone.