Hi, I am newly diagnosed with PMR and these were my symptoms. At first I experienced stiffness in both my hip joints which I attributed to too much exercise (vigorous snowshoeing in VT in early Feb.). Then I continued to walk 3-4 miles a day. Late Feb I was still very stiff in hips but blew it off to age and exercise. Went to Egypt in March and noticed that getting on the bus for tours was very difficult (lifting my leg on that first step was not pretty). By the time we returned from our trip in early April I knew something was not right. Taking NSAIDs gave me some relief but not enough. Two orthopedic surgeons said I had osteoarthritis. By beginning of May pain had settled into both hips, upper thighs, shoulders and neck. My husband had to help me out of bed. After a blood work up I was finally diagnosed by rheumatologist with PMR. The bilateral aspect of the pain seems to be a red flag too. Not sure about the question of your sed rate and CRP being normal but I have heard that it can happen and you can still have PMR. Prednisone has been a game changer for me. At moment I am tapering from a beginning of 30mg to 17.5mg now with the goal of 0 in a few months. No side effects as yet, having blood work done every month, seeing rheumatologist every month. Also taking lots of supplements (Calcium, vit D, vit. K, Pepcid) along with anti inflammatory diet. Have you seen a rheumatologist? Good luck with this journey and have patience.