This sleep thing is so intriguing. I've treated sleep as somewhat optional - try to get 8h... but if I don't, I'll make it up later at $unspecified_date. Unsurprisingly, my Fitbit registered that, for 2023, I got 6.5h of average sleep per night. Your post suggests that making 8-9 hours per night mandatory might do some good; I'm going to give this a go. Thanks!
I think it's worth trying. Not all people are the same but I think getting less that 7 for most people is a bad idea. It's pretty fascinating what the body does while you're asleep to "clean up" and rebuild after the day's activities, especially in the brain. 8-9 is just what I aim for and get.
