Rheumatoid Arthritis (living in, military, vs)

[golfgame]

For those of you in SC that suffer from Rheumatoid Arthritis how does the humidity affect you? What areas of the state are the worst for people who have RA?

[Mistymtnblue]

This question came up when I googled it. Sorry to see no one has answered it here.

I'm moving to coastal NC and was wondering the same thing.

I know that COLD humidity/moisture bothers me a lot and I definitely do better in warmer months...not sure about summer/hot humidity.

Anybody else have an experience to share?

[dsmassey]

Just arrived in Maui today and already my R.A. has flared up considerably... pain in my fingers and knees. Since being on medication, I've had no flare-ups until today. I have to assume it's the humidity here.... disappointing, but I'm in Hawaii, so it can't be all bad.

[ExNooYawk]

We live in Oregon and my husband's aches and pains have reached the point where we may have to think about relocating. So, HI humidity doesn't help? Dang. I guess we'll have to check out AZ and NM.

[Pirate0202]

I'm going thru the same dilemma and it seems Palm Springs, CA, Las Vegas, NV or Phoenix, AZ are the best places for us RA sufferers. Warm or hot and dry are the best. As far as AZ vs NM... one thing to consider is the elevation. As the elevation goes up, the air pressure goes down, since the air is thinner. Low air pressure is the same thing as a weather front moving in that brings storms or rain. So I'm guessing that if you live anywhere and feel pain when a storm approaches, then LOWER elevation is better for you.

Albuquerque is at 5200 feet above sea level (same as Denver). Santa Fe is 7000! Even Las Cruces is 3900. Tucson is 2600, Las Vegas is 2000, Phoenix is 1100, and Palm Springs is 120.

BTW - If you're looking at the weather report's air pressure readings for different cities, don't make the same mistake I did. All cities' pressure measurements are adjusted down to sea level for an accurate comparison between them. Absolute pressure is the main thing to consider.

Also, Albuquerque and Santa Fe have pretty cold and relatively long winters, because of the high elevation. I've been doing this research for about a year now, and that surprised me. Now when I think of those 2 cities, I think more along the lines of Denver than Phoenix or Tucson. Comparable places in AZ would be Sedona, Prescott and Flagstaff, which have a more similar climate.

Another thing is the prevalence of bad weather frontal passages, for the same low pressure reason. Hawaii and extreme Southern CA have the least passages, unless you want to move to Baja Mexico! Phoenix is next on that list, then Tucson, and after that, all of NM. (I hope I have all those facts correct. There's a lot of information out there!)

So here's my plan -- move to the Phoenix area and get a place with a pool. Swimming in that warm water every day in a dry climate can only bring good things! :-)

Hope this helps. Good luck to all of you!

[kwagner1224]

I am wondering the same thing. I currently live on the east side of Oahu and have not had a flare up in 2 years and have been off of prednisone for 2 years, which is huge considering I was on a steriod for the majority of my teens and twenties. (knocking on wood now, lol) We are transitioning out of the military and want to figure out which city to go to next. I'm from Maryland but the harsh humidity and damp cold winters are horrible for me. Too much fluctuation. Everything I have seen is recommending that we go southwest but my husband isn't too thrilled about that and it's not an area that I've been dreaming of living in. We were wondering about tampa, fl or charleston, sc. Wondering if they'd be okay since although humid, the temperatures don't fluctuate drastically. Any input would be appreciated??