East vs. West

So I've suffered from allergies my whole life and have taken shots for about my whole life as well. But I've never really felt that the shots have totally helped relieve the symptoms. Then, as a teenager, I started having problems with arthritis, which is hereditary in my family. Because of my age and the fact that my husband and I do want to have children some day, my doctor is very cautious about what medications he prescribes to me and I greatly appreciate this forethought on the matter. However, it greatly limits the treatments that can even be considered and it's getting to a point where I'm feeling like nothing is helping.

For years I've had various friends and acquaintances suggest that I look into Eastern medicine for help. Several of them have specifically suggested acupuncture. As it happens the museum director has a close friend who is an acupuncturist. I've conversed with this doctor for a bit, then Ryan and I discussed it as well. So I'm going to call and make an appointment to discuss treatment options with this doctor. I'm feeling pretty good about this as the university has referred several athletes to this particular doctor and at this point what else have I got to lose.