Colleen,
I don't think you've gotten complete information from your doctor about your alternatives. I think that most podiatrists would recommend that you get physical therapy treatments which include ultrasound (the metal ball like pregnant ladies get) to see if they can get the swelling down. The exercises, stretches, inferential treatments (with tiny electric waves) and ultrasound are painless and done on a schedule - sometimes 2-3 times a week for 6 weeks or so.
Then if that doesn't work, your podiatrist should be suggesting shockwave treatments. Shockwave treatment is no longer considered 'experimental' and is now approved by most insurances (including Medicaid) for folks who have had PF not relieved by conventional treatment. Some insurance plans have restrictions - you cannot qualify if you haven't tried other treatments for at least a year, for example.
Highspeed shockwave treatment is like the lithotripsy they use to break up kidney stones - they send a bunch of soundwaves in through your skin to 'break up' the scar tissue. It is done under a local anesthetic or 'conscious sedation'. It would be painful to do this without numbing up. Then your foot swells quite a bit - part of the reason why shockwaves work is they bring a ton of blood and healing cells to your foot to take away the scar tissue and then the swelling goes down over a few days. Usually shockwave is done with one or maybe two treatments.
From what I've read shockwave treatments work for about 60% of folks with chronic severe PF.
Then there's a partial fasciotomy done laparascopically. Most podiatrists only recommend this if you've failed 2 years of other treatments. They cut part of the plantar fascia tissue and this takes some of the stress off the heel. These days they no longer scrape calcium deposits off your heels - heel spurs have been proven to have nothing to do with the seriousness of your pain.
Healing from a fasciotomy is definitely slower and you have to be off your feet for at least several weeks. And the success rate for surgery is not that great - some folks do very well, others develop more scar tissue related to the surgery itself, etc.
So you can see there's many alternatives and your podiatrist should be going over these with you and setting up a timeline for you. I recommend getting a second opinion. I would try to find a podiatrist who specializes in sports medicine. Find a local runner's club and ask folks there for the name of a good podiatrist.
I too have PF and have suffered about 7 months - taping, icing, stretching, prescription orthotics, physical therapy, ultrasound. I'm down to about 30% of the amount of pain I was in originally. I no longer do high-impact anything and limit the amount of step aerobics I do. I've also had luck with Z-Coil shoes (they have a steel coil in the heel) to help me with prolonged walking/standing. I will likely go in for shockwave treatments come December...
Good luck!
Dawn P.
although it did heal and nicely too. Don't fear surgery. Get the best podiatrist you can who has performed many; surgeries if you can't use the more conventional treatments.