Bone and Joint Pain

I grew up in New England, and some time in my early teens, I remember suffering from mild bone and joint pain.  I remember, in the middle of summer, being outside wrapped in a blanket to try to keep my bones warm.... It was not severe, but it was constant.  And uncomfortable.

I moved to Texas when I was in my mid 20s and was glad to be out of the cold, as I fiercely felt bone and joint pain in the cold and damp weather... I did not think again about the bone and joint pain until I had been in Texas about 15 or so years.  I noticed then that I had days, in the winter, when I was "stove up" or felt slow, painful, crippled, or stiff.

But those feelings were transient, and generally, I felt fine.  And I could not complain, because I had had those same feelings when I was in New England, and for so many years, they were non-existent.  I told myself, and others, that I was blessed with so many  years of no pain, that I could not complain about the minor pains I felt.

For a long time, I did not understand the true crippling nature of arthritis,  but in the late 1970s, I met someone whose hands were so gnarled and mangled, the fingers were at strange and painful looking angles. Yet this person persevered, and did what she could.  That made me realize that I was right to get out of a climate that could complicate my bone and joint pain. http://www.arthritis.org/

A few years ago, I realized one day that the knuckles on both of my thumbs were swollen and mishapen. They were not painful, and did not effect the functioning of my thumbs, but cosmetically, they were very ugly joints.  Some months ago, I have started to have the knuckles on the ring finger of my right hand "stick."  The knuckles just lock up, but with mild effort, are released.  In the last few days, I have noticed that the knuckles closest to my fingernails of my right hand are swollen.  They are red, but not painful.  Indeed my entire right hand is swollen in comparison to my left hand, the swelling being primarily at the knuckles...

The discomfort is mild, the swelling is mild and I suspect that all will dissipate in due time. For now...