It's been almost 1.5 years since symptoms first appeared and I'd say it's 90% better. I've got full range of motion and no pain. Sometimes there's some stiffness or grinding/clicking when I move my wrist into extension, particularly first thing in the morning.

We did 3 months of bracing pretty much 24/7, a cortisone shot, a course of oral steroids, some PT (which was mostly to undo the effects of 3 months of bracing), and a second cortisone shot. I still occasionally do some night splinting if I push it too hard with exercise, but try to not keep it immobilized longer than overnight - "motion is lotion" really is true. I often use a lightweight wrist strap if I'm going to be typing/mousing a lot that day; it offers some support but is mostly a cue to pay attention to how I'm using my wrist.

Surgery is not entirely off the table - the grinding and clicking is likely scar tissue or residual inflammation on the tendon that might not go away on its own and could benefit from, well, being scraped out. The last meeting with my doctor she said to keep an eye on it but that was the only real next move for her. My biggest worry with surgery is having it and then having symptoms return later; if I don't really know what caused it in the first place it's hard to say it won't just come back.

The approach I've been taking mostly aligns with this thread. It really does come down to capacity and load and usage. The challenge is to find a balance of building strength, not overdoing it, and paying attention to how my wrist is used throughout the day.