Patients report having less physical pain, improved quality of sleep, being sick less often and recovering more quickly, improvement of vitality and stamina, relationships with others deepening and becoming more harmonious, and reductions in long term health care costs. A recent survey of people who receive acupuncture, conducted by Claire Cassidy, Ph.D., indicates that they see their physicians less frequently and use fewer medications. In addition, over two thirds of those surveyed reported having avoided recommended surgery.