Back Pain from osteoarthritis--would like to hear from folks with this problem (living in)

[wldgrdnr]

I would like to hear from people who either have bad osteoarthritis in their lower back ( the most common issue, esp as you age) or know people who do (such as older parents etc.)

There is a BIG difference in what affects osteoarthritis pain vs what affects folks with rheumatoid arthritis pain, so I would only like to hear about those who suffer from severe osteoarthritis and preferably specifically in the lower back.

I would like to know how people with bad osteoarthritis feel in Tri-cities in the winter.

The medical info on what makes osteoarthritis worse seems to indicate high humidity and cold weather make the pain from this condition worse. There is very little solid medical info out there however, but I found one article that seemed to say that it is the combination of the cold and high humidity really is the problem (but there IS all kinds of conflicting medical info out there too).

So that is why I would like to hear from folks with this problem and would like to know how they feel living in the Tri cities, and please be very specific...do the very windy days (25 mph winds) bother you more than the avg 5-10 mph days?

Do the winter months bother you more than the warmer months, and if so, which months?

Any other things that seem to make your arthritis flare in the tri cities area?

Weather and my awful back pain is the primary reason for me looking for a place to relocate.

One source I found said Spain, Phoenix and San Diego are the best places to live. Spain is out of the question, I already have a place in Phoenix where I winter, but summers of 100-115 (more like 115 for about 5 months) are not tolerable for me, and there are a lot of reasons I'd prefer not to live in San Diego, cost of living and CA in general being the main ones...

I'm trying to find a happy medium, and am hoping tri-cities is the answer to my problems but hearing from people who suffer from severe low back osteoarthritis may help me figure this out.

If you are fortunate enough not to have this debilitating condition, please ask around, esp in the older segment of the population and people who have done heavy work all their lives...these are the people most likely to suffer from the same problems I am having.

I am on pain meds 24/7 (long acting morphine and it still is not enough quite often) and have been for 10+ years and there is nothing they can do for this disease...the best answer for comfort is climate, yet the scientists cannot quite figure out (or agree) what precisely makes people feel better...but it seems to be related to changes in barometric pressure, cold and high humidity that make people feel the worst.

Thanks for any help you can give me...obviously I cannot spend a winter there for a "test drive" so hearing from others with this problem is going to be my best source. Best if they have lived in other climates, colder, rainier such as western WA and have noticed improvement living in Tri-cities