Omg. Believe me I feel your pain.
Mine got a lot better when I actually changed my sleep schedule and practiced meditation before bed. Immediate relief in my knees. Apparently whenever I was under stress or depression, I would tense the joints which caused my knees more pain.

I actually had an old thread about that. Lemme find it in case it helps.

Thank you for the ideas! I never really thought about meditation, but it actually makes sense!
And I'm glad there's an alternative for ice packs (they never seem to work for me), that's a really clever idea.

You could also check the medical braces at a place like Wal-Mart or a pharmacy store - you might be able to find some type of knee brace that could help.