Many people find that meditation reduces their need to sleep. A few months ago when I was meditating for around 1.5 hours per day (a mixture of walking and formal sitting meditation) I felt well rested on 5.5 to 6.5 hours of sleep, when my normal needs are 7.5 - 8 hours
Sometimes when I have insomnia I sort of daydream instead of sleeping. When I get up, I am more rested than the 3-4 hours or actual sleep would suggest. I had wondered if the daydreaming was similar enough to sleep to be a poor substitute
I find the opposite. On the nights where I dream a lot, I do not wake up well rested. The best rest I get is when you fall asleep, next moment open your eyes, and it's morning. But I haven't had much of that kind of sleep since I was a kid.
