Analyzing Sleep Quality Effects of Medical Cannabis & Daridorexant with Garmin & Withings: Insights from Body Battery, HRV, and Resting Heart Rate

The following reflections are based on personal experiences and are not part of a scientific study. As an individual participant, I recognize the multitude of factors influencing sleep, including daily events, lifestyle choices, and personal routines.

My experimentation with various doses of Elvanse, alongside adjustments in caffeine intake and the exploration of medical cannabis and Daridorexant, serves as a self-directed effort to address sleep issues. While primarily documenting my own journey, I hope these insights may offer some guidance to others grappling with similar challenges.Over the long term, I aspire to establish more stable conditions for conducting comparative analyses between different sleep medications. My struggle with sleep and mental health traces back to childhood but peaked during my twenties. Dealing with obesity, severe depression, and alcoholism, compounded by personal losses and business failures, led to severe insomnia, with nights of only 1 or 2 hours of sleep exacerbating my existing difficulties.

In my late twenties, facing the stark reality of my mortality, I embarked on a journey to regain control over my life. Weight loss became my obsession, bordering on an eating disorder, yet ultimately leading to significant transformation. Shedding over 100 pounds at one point, I dropped to a lean 154 pounds, later gaining muscle alongside some fat.Through diligent efforts including cutting back on alcohol, rigorous exercise, and establishing a rigid routine, I managed to turn my life around. However, alongside improvements came peculiarities; my daily rhythm evolved into a regimented cycle of early morning work, mid-morning gym sessions, followed by intermittent naps and more work—repeated seven days a week.

While my sleep improved in terms of falling asleep easily, I became a light sleeper, awakening fully after each sleep cycle, roughly five or six times per night. Despite the stress this placed on my sleep quality, I persevered, prioritizing functionality above all else.As my tech blog, Mighty Gadget, gained traction, I felt a sense of fulfillment, yet I remained tethered to my idiosyncratic routine.However, a setback loomed on the horizon. Just before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, I reunited with my biological mother, an event initially welcomed amidst the chaos. Yet, post-lockdown, strained relations with my newfound family, coupled with a troubling familial predisposition to ADHD and alcohol dependency, triggered a mental health crisis. Gaslit and emotionally drained, I severed ties with my biological family, seeking solace in therapy.

Subsequent sessions led to a diagnosis of ADHD, with Elvanse (or Vyvanse in the US), a slow-release prodrug of dextroamphetamine, prescribed to manage symptoms. While the medication effectively cleared brain fog and subdued racing thoughts, its stimulant nature disrupted my sleep patterns.The paradox of using amphetamines to manage a disorder associated with hyperactivity wasn't lost on me. Despite the absence of euphoria, prolonged use of Elvanse brought about a decline in overall well-being, marked by heightened anxiety, distractibility, and irritability.To mitigate these effects, I resorted to dose adjustments and intermittent breaks, acknowledging the suboptimal nature of this approach. Despite its efficacy in managing ADHD symptoms, the toll on sleep quality remained a significant concern.

Accessing medical cannabis in the UK through the NHS remains a challenge, with limited availability primarily for severe conditions like epilepsy or cancer treatment side effects. However, private clinics offer a more accessible route, prescribing cannabis for various disorders, including pain management, depression, anxiety, ADHD, and ASD, provided traditional treatments have been ineffective.After trying numerous antidepressants and benzodiazepines without success, I qualified for medical cannabis treatment. Despite my lack of experience with cannabis, I was prescribed a low initial dosage, typically 10g of flower for vaping and 10 ml of oil for oral use.Discovering a new sleep medication called Daridorexant, marketed as Quviviq, offered a promising alternative. Unlike traditional sedatives, Daridorexant targets orexin neurons to regulate sleep-wake cycles, improving sleep quality without inducing sedation.

Despite being approved for medical use, accessing Daridorexant through the NHS remains challenging due to limited awareness among healthcare providers. Consequently, private treatment remains the primary option, albeit at a considerable cost.While both cannabis and Daridorexant offer potential solutions for sleep disturbances, their effects differ significantly. While cannabis aids in falling and staying asleep, Daridorexant improves sleep quality metrics, albeit with some restlessness reported. Alternating between the two medications helps mitigate tolerance issues.

Using devices like Garmin and Withings, I track the effects of each medication on heart rate variability and overall well-being. While cannabis tends to lower heart rate variability and increase resting heart rate, Daridorexant yields more positive results, including improved sleep quality and heart rate variability.However, subjective experiences differ, with cannabis sometimes leaving me groggy in the morning but less sleepy in the afternoon. Withings indicates better sleep quality with cannabis but higher resting heart rate. Experimenting with medication dosages and lifestyle adjustments remains ongoing to strike a balance between sleep quality, ADHD management, work productivity, and overall well-being.