[ivanovb]

For a long time I had problems falling asleep, no matter how physically or mentally tired I was. And after some introspection I found out that I could not fall asleep because I kept thinking actively about the day that passed or making plans for the next day.

Now I can fall asleep in 10-15 minutes by focusing that mental energy into imagining a favorite place and once the image is established in my mind I let go of control. Then the image kind of comes alive on its own - I like to imagine a clearing in a forest so all kind of creatures appear randomly. I think all this random auto-generated sensory input overrides the real one allowing me to fall asleep.

Of course, it helps if there are no sudden changes in your real environment (loud sounds, sharp changes in lighting, etc.)

It sounds crazy, but it works for me.