To be honest other than rowing occasionally, I'm not very active with my arms. I did forget to mention that I had shoulder pain on the same side about two years ago. I rowed crew my freshman year in college, but it was more leg intensive than arm intensive. The summer after I quit is when the pain started. Went to an ortho who found nothing wrong so he just sent me to PT for a few weeks. It helped for a bit but a few months later the pain was back. On good days it was nonexistent, on bad days it was bearable with ibuprofen and icy hot. I learned to ignore it thinking maybe it was poor posture or it was all in my head. Finally it was bad enough that I went and saw a GP who told me it was muscle spasms due to weak muscles. So I started lifting over the summer, twice a week. I gave up after about a month to focus more on running. The Monday before my kayaking trip I ran a ten mile race, which is the only difference from my usual day to day routine, but I felt great afterwards and was excited to start training for a half marathon the next Monday. Then that Saturday I took a half trip down the local river (something I've done several times and even full trips) and my arm felt off but I was already there and ready to go so I figured maybe I just slept on it wrong. Halfway down to the pickup point is when it started to get bad, I couldn't row much because my arm was dead tired so I just let the current take me most of the way. By the end of the trip the pain was coming on. And now I'm here.

Since then I haven't been active at all because of the pain. No running, lifting or swimming. Just the occasional dishes and daily note taking for class, though I gave that up this week and have opted for taking pictures of classmates notes at the end of class. So resting it has had no help, in fact the pain has been worse these last few days (possibly because of a drop in the temperatures?)

Does the lack of clots in the ultrasound guarantee that I don't have clots? I stupidly listened to my mother and went home to the ER for the ultrasound and they checked my neck and my arm in an upward position while opening and closing my hand. Is this standard for an ultrasound or should they have done more? They didn't send me home with the CDs so I couldn't even give them to my ortho for a second opinion.

This last visit to my ortho when they decided on the venogram they also found I had a decreased pulse in my left arm when they made me hold it above my shoulder for 30 seconds, I don't know if that's a symptom they didn't really explain.

Also how odd is it to be getting a venogram done at this point? My mother is convinced that it isn't necessary because she thinks they could still do an MRI or a CT, hence the arguing. I disagreed with her because the ortho brought in a radiologist and an intervention radiologist and they collectively decided this was the next step. I just want to make sure I made the right decision in ignoring her because I know I made the wrong one in going home for the ultrasound.

And any tips or links to threads about pain management? Nothing is helping, I've tried ice and hot baths, 1000mg of ibuprofen, muscle relaxers and icy hot and the only thing that helps is immobilizing my arm and I can I only do that so much because I still need to be able to write.

Thanks so much!