It's sounding like an 'ideal 'place is nigh onto impossible to find. My brother has been in las vegas for about 10 years and reports that, the last couple years, their humidity us rising quite a bit. When you are accustomed to the midwest, chicago and environs, 30 percent humidity sounds like a sneeze. But. As he says, when you factor it into temps well over 100.... It's pretty brutal. My husband had crippling arthritis issues, never diagnosed as anything in particular, though it rendered him immobile and confined to a wheelchair the last year of his life. I always wished we'd had the oppty to explore how much difference a climate change might have made.

To Gunner04

Your daughters story sounds just like me. I am now 48 . I was diagnosed with Jra at 16 when my knees had to be drained because they were so bad I couldn't walk.
I was told by the Doctor I would be in a wheelchair by time I was 30. Good thing I didn't listen as most teens dont.
I had problems my entire life before that but when I was growing up I was always told children don't get arthritis.So of coarse I just pretty much just dealt with it until my early 20's I couldn't anymore.
So move ahead 25 years. I am from Illinois . My husband and I moved to California for his job and a change. I didn't notice a difference at first until I was pregnant with our second child when I felt just great I must have been feeling really bad before and learned to live with it. When your pregnant your body goes in remission. I had been basically on prednisone snd methotrexate before
So when I got pregnant not only did I feel awesome I lost weight because I had stopped the prednisone.I had an emergency c-section at 8 months they said the baby had stopped growing due to ra and she would do. Better out . She is fine today other than extra weeks in hospital. But right after I was off pain meds in hospital my body crashed. I could barely move. At the time biologics didn't exist I had found a great Doctor at UC Davis in California. He introduced me to enbrel was brand new . It was my medical miracle. I felt the best I had since I was pregnant. I stayed that way a long time. Until we made the mistake of moving to Fl in 2004 . Thought it would be a less expensive place to live since California had gotten very very expensive. What I learned its all relative. But I am now in the worst shape of my life . My quality of living if u wanna call it that is nkn existent.
So just my opinion and experience is move to where the least amount of humidity u can find. I have finally convinced my husband that the humidity in Fl has caused my downfall I have never felt so bad in my life . I have hsd surgeries over the years also. Non which in my opinion seemed to help including toes like your daughter.
But I have been back to California to visit a few times both Northern and Southern snd I can tell u it makes huge huge difference even in little humidity change. So we are looking to move back outwest next summer when my daughter is out of school
(Shes 15) . 48 isn't old anymore and I refuse to just sit in my house suffering day after day when I know a change in climate will help me. We visited Colorado also . Great and dry but winter isnt good. My sister and her family had lived in Northern California for over 26 years snd her husband was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritiswhwhich is similar to ra . They moved to Nevada in 2006 and even the difference between California and Nevada he noticed a change for the better. I never thought of it being that much of a difference.
So anyway im long winded . I could tell u alot more of what I've gone through if you ever have questions that may help your daughter in any way feel free to email me.
I hope it helped somewhat. I wish I had someone who knew what I was going through at such a young age. I always felt alone.
I am also praying my daughter doesn't follow im my footsteps cause this horrible disease is hereditary. My oldest sister has it and my grandmother had it.

Sorry to ramble
Laurie M

For me, the desert climate of southern Arizona was a miracle cure or my arthritis. When I lived in New England, I suffered - until, at the age of 61, I moved to Green Valley (just south of Tucson). Then my arthritis pains disappeared. Recently I moved to southern Oregon (said to be much less rainy than much of the Northwest). Now my arthritis is back. According to an on-line website today (wunderground.com), the humidity here is 80%. Near my home on Cape Cod,it is 98%. In Green Valley it is 14%. Green Valley is also MUCH more affordable than Oregon or Cape Cod. Edith

It's been 2 years and 4 months since I commented on this thread (4th post). What I said then is still true.
I don't know where in southern Oregon sophismother lives, but there are cheaper places to live in Oregon where it is somewhat drier.
I try to get out of Oregon for at least a week in February or March to a warmer spot (AZ or NM).

I thought I'd post this:

<i> RA [rheumatoid arthritis] variables are positively correlated with the humidity of the microclimate at the patient's skin. High outdoor relative humidity is unfavorable, but has less influence when there are few barriers for water vapor, like clothes, and when air conditioning is used. High temperature is unfavorable since it increases absolute humidity, but beneficial as well, since it reduces the presence of barriers, and stimulates the use of air conditioning. The classic opinion, "Cold and wet is bad, warm and dry is good for RA patients," seems to be true only as far as humidity is concerned. </i>

Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15229951

The increase of 'microclimate' humidity by wearing clothes I get, but going around as a nudist has a few problems associated with it as well...

The thing is, although we live in a cold, damp area (my joints are groaning even now) in the winter the temperature gradient between heated house and outdoors lowers humidity (warmer, more humid air escapes to the outside, to be replaced with drier air that is heated as it passes through furnace. Joints like dry air, lungs not so much, and ain't it a wonderful world?)

When I'm out on the bike in cooler weather, I notice it... even when I'm not wearing mitts. My thumbs, which are supposed to work the lower trigger shifters, don't work so well - sports medicine guy says, women are prone to arthritis in thumb joints. Great, but we ladies still have to change gears out on the bike. I've resorted to using the palms of my hands...

Tom said that he didn't know where Sophismother lives in Oregon. I'm Sophi's mother, Edith. (Sophi is my Golden Retriever.) Three months ago we moved to Talent (just outside Ashland), an area that is said to be among the driest in Oregon. I'd hate to imagine how I'd feel in some of Oregon's wettest areas.

The Talent-Ashland-Medford area may not be especially expensive. But Green Valley IS especially affordable. The property taxes on my condo are $300 per year. "Retirement" areas such as Green Valley (where 97% of the homes are age-restricted) don’t have much in the way of school costs (Our “children” are middle-aged adults.) There is no police; the county sheriff’s department provides the alternative, but people in their 60s through 90s don’t commit a lot of crimes. Homes are also affordable; one can buy a nice 2 or 3 bedroom home for under $100,000. Retirement areas also have very low rates on auto insurance.

I am probably more aware of cost of living factors, since I am from (damp) Cape Cod, where the rising property taxes caused me to sell the home that had been in my family for 5 generations. I left Cape Cod because I could not afford to keep the home I had inherited. Imagine my (pleasant) surprise when I noticed that all my arthritic aches and pains had gone away in southern Arizona. Now my arthritis pains are VERY noticeable. According to wunderground.com, humidity here this morning is 96%, the humidity on Cape Cod is 98%, and in Green Valley, the humidity is 18%. I’ve often seen the humidity in Green Valley listed at 6% or 9%.

I have moderate osteoarthritis in my right knee and mild osteoarthritis in my left knee. Oddly enough, humidity alone does not aggravate it; a significant change in weather (from dry to wet or wet to dry) does. And it bothers me least in a hot and humid climate -- I had no knee problems at all when I was in Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) or in Philly during a summer heat (and humidity) wave. And if I go into a steam room at a spa, my knees usually feel much better afterwards. FWIW, Tiger Balm does help, but it also has a strong smell.

My experience is different. In FL when it gets humid( often) my knees kill me. In dry Tucson no pain at all.

I hear Arizona is the best place to move for a person with Arthritis, is there a few people on this site that would chime in regarding arthritic pain before and after moving to Arizona? Thank you!
Sophismother at times do you regret leaving Arizona especially since the humidity is high in the morning where you are now?
Thanks.

I have many health issues. I am in my early 40's and some days feel as if I'm 80 because I have osteoarthritis, Degenerative Disc Disease, Spondylitis, lower back fusion, fibromyalgia and possibly MS. I asked my doctor is there anything they can do for me besides medicine and he said to move to a warmer drier climate, especially drier. It is so depressing to wake up in the morning and not be able to move or wake up in debilitating pain. I was disabled by the state back in 2011 and been fighting with pain ever since 2000,with back fusion surgery in 08'. I need to live someplace warm, dry and pretty. I lived in the panhandle of Texas and did not like it. I come from a place with beautiful flowering trees, green pastures, green rolling hills, and beautiful lakes and rivers. So anyone know of a place that looks like that and it's warm and dry let me know!!

I am sorry but green pastures, green rolling hills, and beautiful lakes and rivers does not go with dry. They need humidity to grow and to be green. Dry goes with desert, brown land, sage brush, etc., since dry air does not have humidity. You are being unrealistic so pick one.

angelsrnx2u, I'm curious if and what you decided about moving, can you update?

I also felt like you were describing me when I read your initial post, not exactly, but similarly.

I also live in the NW, out in the islands, and I have had it!! Just last month I was in California for 8 days and felt WONDERFUL. In fact, I didn't know how wonderful I felt until I returned home... :-( Here at home my body aches all the time; I have osteoarthritis in my neck, hands, knees and hips, plus more ailments...and I'm a young 53. I've had 2 knee surgeries, need a knee replacement, and just had shoulder surgery last month. Nothing feels good right now!

Would sure love to hear what you decided to do.

Hi all,

I hadn't been checking this group for awhile, and apologize for not replying to the question about whether I regret leaving southern Arizona for the Ashland OR area. Yes!!!! I regret it very much! Two days ago we listed our Oregon house for sale. The condo in Green Valley is rented out until March 31, so the return to Arizona has to wait for 2 months. But I am very much looking forward to returning to a desert climate. While here in Arizona, I asked my doctor what she thought about the connection between climate and arthritis. She said that many people from California move to Oregon for the lower cost-of-living, but then they discover that their arthritis is much worse, all except for the summer months when southern Oregon has dry weather. I have had conversations with some people here who complain about their arthritis. Those whose financial situation pretty much rules out a move tend to get angry when I talk about the desert climate, as in: "I do NOT want to talk about the rain and the dampness BECAUSE I am stuck here."

I agree sophismother. However, Tucson and Phoenix are very different. My DD went four year to college in Tucson and we have friends we visit in Phoenix. I would definitely pick Tucson over Phoenix any day.

Tucson has beautiful mountains that ring the city, beautiful architectural homes in the highlands, a smaller more cultural and environmental feel, less cookie cutter.

Phoenix was built up in the 1970's and has thousands of subdivisions. I always feel the ordained or city mandated color is brown and every shade thereof. Everything is mono-chromatic, flat, and boring. IMHO! But, our friends love it so there you go.

Phoenix also has higher humidity. They created many lakes and ponds and have destroyed the desert environment.

Hi @angelsrnx2u, I suffer from the same symptoms, can I connect with u to know what helps u reduce the pain?

Hi,
I have lived in Grand Junction Colorado for 18 years. We have what is considered a moderate 4 season climate. Most snow I have seen in one storm is 6 inches. Check historical weather data sites for temps, moisture.,etc. Humidity very low normally below 20%. Relatively small city, about 70,000 including " suburbs" with state University, symphony, major regional med center and outdoor rec. Housing very reasonable.Check real estate sites for large range of options. Elev. sbout 4800 feet.We are 30 miles from Utah border.

Sixty miles south is Montrose Colorado. lovely town, about 20,000 with many amenities. Weather similar. Elev about 6000 ft.

Hope this gives you an idea of what this part of Colorado offers.

I am 61, do NOT have artritis or health issues. I lived in Sarasota for 22 years, moved back to PA (what was I thinking????) and will retire in 1 1/2 to 3 years. Was planning to move back to FL to Venice since I love the gulf, the beach, the lifestyle. However, I am aware that at some point I am likely to get arthritis and why stay in pain if you dont' have to. Going on vacation to Palm Springs and am actually considering it either upon retirement or when arthtitis actually kicks in. I would miss the water - and I guess Pacific is too cold to swim - would be closer to Hawaii but in Venice I could walk/swim at the beach every day. such decisions.

One of negatives about living in the desert is that you have to give up beaches and the ocean or bays. If you don't have arthritis, I don't understand why you wouldn't return to Florida which you seem to love. You can always move if you develop severe painful arthritis.