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1323278 tn?1298122488

Best places to live with MS

I am curious:  What would be the best places to live with MS, and why?  I guess weather is the first issue.  I am from a very hot town, and I currently reside in a place that gets very hot summers and there is a high risk of hurricanes.  Another issue would be healthcare.  Family and friends are an absolute priority as well.  What places would you consider?  
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Avatar universal
There are good and bad places to live in terms of the physical effects of MS. But the best place is where you are happiest, and that usually means where your loved ones are. It's possible to adapt and find solutions to everything else. Not perfectly, but what in life is perfect?

ess
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Moist heat (humidity) is a *****!!  I currently live in Iowa, where we have all 4 seasons.  Summer is subtropical (hot and humid).  Someone else has to buy my groceries those months, because I can't take the 20 minutes of humid heat I am exposed to while loading my groceries and cooling off the car.  I have lived in Seattle, and agree the temps are ideal with surprisingly little humidity and no less than SIX major MS care centers.  BUT it is very expensive and crowded, with traffic problems and you have 9 months of low cloud cover with weak sunlight.  This can be a problem for those who experience S.A.D. -- and we all know people with MS are more susceptible to depression!  kJ
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5112396 tn?1378017983
Hi Christy!

If you'd like to start a brand new thread with your questions and concerns, at the top of this page, you'll see a green button that says 'post a question'. That will put your question at the top of the heap. We'll be happy to address your questions!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Hello :) this is my first time on here and I'm not quite sure how I go about posting a comment. I have several questions and new to all of this. not to mention feeling on my own and scared. If you could get back to me I'd greatly appreciate it.

Christy
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1831849 tn?1383228392
Hi CC - Welcome to the group!

The bulk of this thread goes back over 4 years. Quix pops in from time to time, but is focused on her 3D world. I just didn't want you to think she was ignoring you :-)

You might Post A Question and tell us a little about your MS story. We're a friendly bunch :-)

Kyle
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Doesn't it rain a lot and there for humidity issues in the  north west?
Helpful - 0
7628920 tn?1392765195
Hi, I am looking to relocate.  I am a Floridian  the temp here ***** daily.My husband and I are looking to move to somewhere that the temp is ok for my RRMS and he will be work as a Family Nurse Practitioner. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Ireland! Nice moderate climate, not too warm, not too cold. And in terms of treatment, once you get an MS diagnosis, all DMDs/OT equipment is free.
Helpful - 0
382218 tn?1341181487
I'm not sure about the US but in Canada, one can write off up to $1K for an air conditioning unit with a letter from their physician stating it is medically necessary. Might be worth looking into in your state.
Helpful - 0
5112396 tn?1378017983
Where someone lives may make things trickier, but there are supports and modifications available to make your current locations workable. If you have friends there and great doctors, there is really no way a move will be of more benefit than just staying.

Perhaps contact your local MS Society branch for information on support programmes or supplies. I know many branches give away cooling vests and may even offer some sort of volunteer in-home assistance.

On this link http://www.nationalmssociety.org/chapters/PAE/index.aspx, click on "Programs and Services". It looks like a lot is on offer to help you.
Helpful - 0
7515481 tn?1391523302
Hi...  I am looking for direction for the future with ms...Heat and cold are bad.....Philadelphia is humid but near my friends...I need help with groceries and chores...I have a great doctors....I am willing to expatriate....

Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I moved to NM from the NE and I have been having more flares and developed more strange MS symptoms. I am an upstate NY girl and used to a degree a heat and humidity. The extreme heat wipes me out and I am sick more than I feel well. We are heading to Portland ME, Boston is nearby for specialist. I spent 15 years without needing to be on continuous medication and within one year my MRI is devastating. Starting Rebiff soon and on enough Baclofen to put down a horse. I am putting  off the baclofen pump until we finish our 2 year commitment here in NM, hoping to feel better.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
For anyone thinking Arizona! Not! I was born and raised here. And its the closest to haidys that i can think of. Like this past week and this coming weeks are way in the 109.+. And if we are lucky it may cool down by XMas.  Not to leave out the high winds and humidity that we seem to have more and more of each year. And winners that goes without saying , some years we have one some we don't. there are times when you're not sure if summer ever stopped.Now don't get me wrong.You can go to the north or south of Phoenix. But to fare either way,and your to winntery. All the family i have is here,Ex,Kids, Grandkids.But I Am looking to move from here.I love them all but,I Am no fun when i can't do anything with them.I have RRMS + other med conditions.and this is not! the place to be.And with the heat,you have to wait till after sunset way after,then everything's closed! I tell people to spend one full summer then decided.
Helpful - 0
572651 tn?1530999357
Arizona in the winter time sounds great to me - much better than winter in Milwaukee.  

The sunshine and temperate weather should be fine.  Can you try it one year and make sure?  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
My wife has MS and we live in the Milwaukee,Wi area and are considering buying a condo  to stay in Arizona for the winter.
Any thoughts about this would help.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
humidity knocks me for a loop. dry heat is very tolerable. lived in yuma arizona, very dry and lots of heat and was better than san diego after may when the heat gets up and over the years the humidity has been increasing there.
Helpful - 0
1337734 tn?1336234591
I live in Syracuse, NY, snow capital of the USA :( The snow is horrible, but they sure know how to handle it. Roads are always well plowed! It really is great weather for me. We get all4 seasons. Our summers are beautiiful- hot, but not humid. There are 4 major hospitals in the city. Heat and humidity totally exasperates my MS which is why I feel best in the cool north east.
The Pacific northwest sounds perfect. I would consider it but everyone I know is on the east coast!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
You make an awesome point. I am not in the meical field but I don't believe it would go away unless they find a way to scrape the plaque off the brain but maybe it would slow it down so more wouldn't form. I have MS no lyme disease. So it wouldn't help me either way. :(
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Canada ***** the wait lists suck. Doctors r burnt out working in a public system. Don't move to a cold country with MS. Canada has extreme barometric changes from the ocean and mountains in west and over the great lakes. Plus it is boring and expensive. Canada has the most amount of MS patients in the world. Interestingly everyone I know who has tested positive for MS  tests positive for Lyme disease. Is it really MS or MS secondary to untreated Lyme disease? If you treat the Lyme disease would the MS go away?
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Hi Pablo,

Canada has a great health care program - sometimes the wait time for appointments and tests is longer than in the U.S, but the services are just as good. I have lots of family in the U.S. and my sister pays so much for her insurance that I can't even imagine it... so the difference really comes in regarding cost.  I don't have to pay for any appointments or tests. I was just recently diagnosed and found out that most of my drugs are covered by my province's health program (some province's cover more and some less) and the remaining cost is covered by a grant - I've never heard of anyone who has not been able to get full coverage.  

Regarding the weather - Canada has so many different climates that it's just as broad of a topic as considering a move within the U.S. Most parts of Canada, except the west coast and the northern provinces and territories, are 4 climate seasons, and have severe swings from hot to cold throughout the year. The west coast has a more mild climate but it's wet, which is not ideal for MS as it promotes inflammation. The territories are very, very cold, but they are dry. Ideally the mountains flanking BC and Alberta would be ideal as the temperatures are mild (although colder than the valleys in the winter - they do get snow) but are dryer. I would think mid U.S. mountain ranges would be ideal as well. What I do know is that while less people who live close to the equator get MS, living closer to the equatore once you have it is difficult. the temperatures are more even but are much warmer. Although if you live on the coast where coastal breezes help to cool things down, that would help. I've often thought that the San Fran area would be great as the temperatures are fairly regular, not too hot or cold and not too wet.

I hope this helps,

Janine
Helpful - 0
1475492 tn?1332884167
I am voting for my area as well: Pacific Northwest. I live in a nice little suburb of Seattle. It's a 40 minute drive to get there for me.  

I am in limboland but the limited exposure I've had to heat has been a really good thing. I've had ONE day were the temperature reached 80* and my symptoms flared. We also are a hot spot for MS so I'm hopeful that the doctors are a little more aware and knowledgeable.

I am from Colorado Springs. I'd move back there in a second as well. I'd try to limit my time outdoors during the peak of the summer. I love the Rocky Mountain back drop and the dry heat. I miss living there. I'd have to live near a lake in order to bring my PNW roots back with me. :)

I would love to retire in Hawaii. My husband and I had intended on it - snorkeling with my Starbucks (I am a Seattle-ite by nature!) at sunrise every day is my dream. I'm not sure how that will work if this is MS. Is it possible for your body to acclimate to the temperature changes? ::)

Helpful - 0
338416 tn?1420045702
I would like very much to move upstate.  Texas has become very hot, and it won't get any better.  It's starting sooner and sooner - this year, it got hot in April, and we were seeing 100° days before June.  Wow, only 98° today.  Whoo-hoo!

When we got our house, I expected to be able to mow the yard and take care of things - now I'm lucky to be able to stand up long enough to do dishes.  So we're keeping the option of moving to Canada in our minds...
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I liked this thread originally and still do.

Particularly because of my active fantasy life, I love imagining living in a lot of places, always on a coast, though. San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle all have their charms, and since I've been to all, this has some basis in reality.

But when it's all boiled down, I'm an east coast kind of lady. This is where my roots are, my family, my home. Horrible hot summers, very unpredictable but often bad winters, beautiful springs and falls. Home is always best. I just have to deal with MS on home terms.

Bet people here didn't realize I'm a sentimental fool.

ess
Helpful - 0
1453990 tn?1329231426
Moist heat and cold are worse.  Higher humidity increases the Thermal Transfer Rate, so you get hotter faster (and colder quicker.)  Low humidity can also save you money.  Swamp coolers (Evaporative coolers) and other evaporative cooling (vests, towels, etc.) work in low humidity, but are not very effective in high humidity.

Bob
Helpful - 0
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