Tell me your patellofemoral pain (runner's knee) success stories!

Hello! 32/F. I am an extremely active mountain athlete who normally participates heavily in trail running, backpacking (section hikes included), ski touring and ski mountaineering.

Recently completed a 700 mile section of the CDT over 2 months which necessitated 2 months off from running and my usual 2x weekly heavy strength training (have never taken this long off in 10 years). Came back from the section hike and went back to lifting/running with too much enthusiasm! I had acute onset of patellofemoral pain when doing split squats at the gym with 120lbs on September 8th. (I weigh about 56kg for context)

Initially, my recovery was VERY fast. I had no pain 1 week after injury and was back to 3-6 miles of flat running 3x week and all of my heavy lifting (minus split squats) within 2 weeks of . However! Unfortunately, my PT had me go back to trail running and hiking too soon. After 4 weeks of excellent recovery- the pain made a much more insidious return, showing up as mild irritation the day after a trail run or hike. Unfortunately, I was told to keep exercising (by my PT) despite the pain since it was so mild- WRONG advice!

The pain became persistent in late- October. It has been extremely mild since then but very persistent. I immediately stopped exercising for two weeks and started with a new PT when the pain went from intermittent to persistent. I am currently following a comprehensive lifting program in the gym and slowly building up weight on the single leg extension and single leg press machines by adding 5lbs each week. I am allowed to do heavy weight on heel raises, hip thrusts, RDL's (everything non knee dominant). I have been doing this new program for 3 weeks.

I am allowed to go for a 30 minute walk per day and cycle for 10 minutes on gym days. I will also be trying some swimming this week ok'd by my new PT.

I still have pain that is 1 or 2/10 on the pain scale. It is localized directly below my knee cap on the right knee. For some reason, I tend to have no pain for the first half of the day and increased pain in the afternoon/evening. The sensation is almost always there but does not prohibit me from walking, squatting or doing any ADL's. I actually don't have any pain with squatting which I'm told is unusual.

Not looking for medical advice, just looking for positive outcome stories or people that are currently working through this and doing well. The injury depression has HIT me HARD. My life revolves around my love and passion for mountain sports and this is the first I've had in 10 years. I've never been so injured that I had to stop hiking, running and skiing altogether.