So glad to hear that you're doing better, Mellster. Where exactly are you living that the air feels so good?
People with CFS often do better on the ocean (if they can live right at the beach, especially). The most common explanation is that (regardless of whether they are aware of it) they are sensitive to inflammatory toxic molds (and other microorganisms) in the environment, and that those molds are not as prevalent right at the beach.
For instance, here Dr. Sarah Myhill talks about the effect:
>Patients who are not responding to a standard allergy work up are often suffering from mould sensitivity. This is not an easy diagnosis to make because skin prick tests for mould allergy are unreliable. Furthermore it is uncertain whether symptoms are due to allergy to moulds or to sensitivity to mould fumes. This is a little bit like yeast overgrowth in the gut - for some people this causes a problem because they are allergic to yeast and for some because they react to the products of fermentation.
>The key to diagnosing mould allergy is the history and if patients are improved in a mould free or low mould environment then this is highly suggestive that moulds are a problem. In order to survive moulds have to get their water from air, therefore they do not exist either in very dry climates (which may be hot dry or cold dry), above three thousand feet where the air is too thin to hold sufficient moisture, or on sea fronts where the prevailing winds are onshore. Since moulds do not live in oceans, their spores are constantly blown in land.
>Therefore, to diagnose mould allergy I currently recommend that people have a two week holiday in such a mould free environment. They may have already done this and not realised that their improvement was actually due to the control of their mould allergy and ascribe improvement to other factors such as freedom from stress, or sunshine, or whatever.
http://www.drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Mould_Sensitivity
Like England, SF is cold and damp and has a lot of toxic mold (both indoors and outdoors). If people can get to a place with reduced amounts of it, they often feel better.
Here's an thread about how the English musical theatre star Michael Crawford recovered from his ME/CFS by moving to a beachfront house in New Zealand.
http://forums.phoenixrising.me/showthread.php?16783-Michael-Crawford-and-the-Locations-Effect
Here is some discussion of people feeling better while in Hawaii and considering why that might be.
http://forums.phoenixrising.me/showthread.php?13799-Mold-or-Oxygen-Feel-better-in-Hawaii
http://ampligen4me.wordpress.com/2011/09/24/what-is-it-about-hawaii/
Here is a board dedicated to exploring this type of effect in ME/CFS:
http://locationseffect.proboards.com/index.cgi?
Can I ask you -- when you moved, did you bring along your possessions from your old place?
Also, would you consider sharing your experiences on the Locations Effect board?
Best, Lisa