Rheumatoid Arthritis (Phoenix, Scottsdale: apartments, look for a job, YMCA)

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by Howard Roark

The hilarious thing for me is if I ever had a holo deck, like on "Star Trek: The Next Generation" I would be happy in a starship with that holodeck and where the nearest star is a billion light years away. I mean I am happy with an air conditioner that works too well and leaves me cold - in Phoenix, and don't have to have the "fresh cool air of an ocean breeze" to be happy.

I always found it amazing about people who must live right on the beach and see the ocean. Oceans have always been way overrated, IMO. They are blue. They are boring. Not much happens on the surface! LOL. And you have to pay over $1,000,000 for a structure built in 1950 on the ocean front so that you won't have to pay $300 per month for air conditioning four months out of the year! GOOD GRIEF!

No, I don't "have to" live near the ocean. No one does!

Good quality air conditioning in my Arizona apartment while I relax on my high quality Arizona Leather sofa and watch a game on my TV is my holo deck. The wintertime - being outside is like frosting on the cake. And the dry air is so soothing for my bones!

Exactly

First of all the ocean is usually not blue, it's black or brown. The beaches are usually rocky. Oh yeah, and the weather and water is cold. It's not Hawaii, or Cozumel. The ocean in Cali is usually a psychological thing. Rarely do people go to the beach or use it unless they are on or near it.

And to be honest, I love my pool deck. I have misters, a nice beautiful well lit BLUE pool with waterfalls. A nice built in BBQ. It's not like we are sufferring. Add in the fact there are no bugs, flies or mosquitoes and it's nearly perfect.

[imdarwinsdream]

I'll be living in Az shortly. just sold the house in NY. I'm very excited to feel better! i have chronic Lyme disease and am moving on my doctor's suggestion. she said others, with Lyme, have moved to much drier weather and are doing much better. Thanks everyone for such inspiration!!! Reading this thread has really lifted my spirits. Making a major move is scary and you all have made me feel so much better about my decision. My h and I will be closing on our house in Sept. - then off to AZ! Whoo Hoo!!

[Pirate0202]

imdarwinsdream -- good luck with your move! You are lucky to be able to sell your house in this economy. I hope the move will be a great thing for your health.

I'm looking forward to my move as well. I am envisioning it being a great move all the way around, not just because of the climate, but also lower cost of living, less hectic pace of life, (as DewDropInn said,) lower population density and the many midwestern transplants (like myself!)

Howard Roark and azriverfan -- I couldn't agree more!!! With all due respect to Mother Nature - the ocean in CA is boring after a while! After I rode my bike down the strand (a concrete path on the sand for bikes, rollerbladers and walkers) for the first 6 months I lived in SoCal, I already saw every wave, dolphin, seagull, pelican, surfer, etc, that I would ever want to see. And at night, it just becomes a big black hole. The sound of the waves crashing is nice, but the water is WAAAAAY too cold to swim in, so it's kinda like a tease. Not very nice!

I can't wait to have a house with a pool in the backyard so I can set it up just the way azriverfan describes his -- now that sounds like heaven on earth to me!

[imdarwinsdream]

Pirate, i can't agree with you more - less cost of living, lower housing prices. My home is selling for 205,00 - which is 100,000 less than appraised for 3 yrs ago. - But I still know i can get a house for 1/2 that price. By outright. I'm on disability, due to the lyme, so i don't make much. Hubby and i have a trucking bus in NY.Work will be hard to find in AZ. All of this moving is really risky for us, but i know I have to do this for my health and the less cost of living. My medical expenses have zapped alot of our money throughout the years. My daughter , 21 , also has chronic lyme since she was born. She's not moving out there, which really makes me feel bad, but i know if i stay here, my health will just get worse and worse. I would take any improvement right about now!!

So, good luck to all of you who are moving to AZ to feel better. The dry heat can only improve our chances for a more quality life. And, when you feel better, the whole world looks better!

[Pirate0202]

Good luck to you imdarwinsdream! I'm sure the move will prove to be a good thing for your health in many ways, and you may find that some of the worries you have now are really no big deal once you get out there.

Another question to everyone who responded previously with a friend or relative who experienced an improvement in their arthritis symptoms after moving to AZ. Do you know how long it took for them to notice a difference? It may sound like I'm impatient -- I am! But it's because I tried being a vegan for 7 months to see if it would help my situation, but I just got worse and worse. When I finally started eating meat again, my health skyrocketed. I've also been on countless other diets, vitamins, minerals, potions, snake oil, etc, etc that looked promising. I just do not want to wait for such a long time only to find out that I'm not going to get the results I wanted.

[imdarwinsdream]

Pirate, I know i can't tell you how long it will be to feel better but - I know my lyme is similar to your illness. This is how i see it. when the weather in NY is drier and sunnier - sometimes spring and fall and early summer - my body and spirits feel sooo much better. As you know, the longs wretched days of dreary rain, no sun, humidity really wreck havoc with our overall well being. The longer these days go on, the worse we feel and the more depressed we feel. You know, a vicious cycle. With more sunny days ahead, our immune systems will be stronger, our outlook will be better. moving is stressful so we have to give ourselves time to heal after the move. But all will be better for us. So, yes, I do really believe there are better days ahead for both of us. I am taking a big risk moving, as well. my family will be back in NY and i don't know anyone in AZ. But i will join a support group right away to make those connections.

Note to self - the whole world looks better when I feel better.

There are better days ahead for both of us! Know it, believe it, it will happen. Sure, their may not be a cure, but, I think i can safely say - any improvement will be a blessing

[disasterbk]

Hi everyone. I am new to the forums, but wanted to chime in on the discussion. I am 29 and have had RA for about a year now, been told its mod to severe, basically stuck with pain in most joints all of the time. I live in Socal and decided to take a vacation out in the Phoenix area just to check it out and see if it made any difference with my RA symptoms. I was quite sceptical about it making any difference, but my wife wanted to see whether it would help. We only stayed for 4 days, but even during that time I noticed a big improvement. I had more mobility, less joint stiffness, and a good 25-50% reduction in pain. Please keep in mind that this is just my experience and everyone is different, but I would definitely recommend a vacation to anyone that is willing to at least try it out. We just went this last week during August so it is a very hot time of year for them 105-115 during the day so we are planning another trip during the winter to see if there is still an improvement before going forward with a move.

[lucygirl1]

[quote=disasterbk;15607971]We only stayed for 4 days, but even during that time I noticed a big improvement. I had more mobility, less joint stiffness, and a good 25-50% reduction in pain. Please keep in mind that this is just my experience and everyone is different, but I would definitely recommend a vacation to anyone that is willing to at least try it out.

Just wanted to say that I'm sorry to hear about your RA. I've had it for seven years now and it's no fun. I was excited to hear that after only four days you noticed improvement. My family and I are moving to AZ soon, mainly in hopes of seeing my RA improve. Are you very swollen? If so, did you notice the inflammation going down during your four day stay? I have very swollen wrists and fingers and am hoping so much that the inflammation will go down once we move.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by Pirate0202

I can't wait to have a house with a pool in the backyard so I can set it up just the way azriverfan describes his -- now that sounds like heaven on earth to me!

I just got back from a trip to Hawaii. The water was so cold, my one year old was freezing in the hotel pool at 4 PM. The pool water in my home is perfect and my baby has no problem getting in. It's truly nice to be able to take a dip in a pool with perfect temperature. My pool is not heated either. The hot weather makes the pool water a perfect temperature.

And regarding my pool deck, that scenario might sound lavish but in the Phoenix metro, that setup is common. Many houses have pools with a nice deck and patio. Putting up a mister system is easy. And you don't need a built in grill, you can buy a nice outdoor grill from Lowes or wherever for really cheap. And with no bugs crawling around or humidity, it's such a great feeling to have friends over and relaxing outside for hours

[disasterbk]

Originally Posted by lucygirl1

Are you very swollen? If so, did you notice the inflammation going down during your four day stay? I have very swollen wrists and fingers and am hoping so much that the inflammation will go down once we move.

I have moderate inflammation, especially in my fingers, wrists, and knees. I did notice that the swelling went down a little during our stay. I am hoping that with living there it would give it time to go down even more. I dont know if it was the elevation or just the extreme dry heat that caused the improvement, all I know is that it was great. I have heard that for some people it doesn't make any difference or can even make their pain a little worse with RA, but for me the desert climate seems to be ideal for living with RA. Good luck on your upcoming move, let us know how it works out.