I’ve mercifully escaped any experience with pneumothorax, but have cracked a rib in my back in a crash. Pain when not under any load went down to a manageable level within a few days and I was able to spin easy on the trainer almost straight away (it also helped ease muscle tension and aid recovery). The real killer was that I couldn’t sleep unless laying completely motionless on my back. Breathing hurt, shifting my weight woke me up, laying on my side was unbearable, and sleeping on my front didn’t work either. Took about 4 weeks before my sleep was recognisably ‘normal’ again, and just as the doctor predicted, it was almost exactly 6 weeks to the day when I was no longer in any kind of discomfort.
From what others are saying it sounds like the soft tissue injuries from the pneumothorax are significantly more painful but will also heal much faster than the ribs. Ribs are tough and a full break rather than a crack might change your timeline a bit, but whether it’s six, eight, or ten weeks that’s really not that long once you’re looking back on it ten months later. You’ll get there!