I was a cross country runner in middle school and high school. There really is no substitute for surgery, the pain is unbearable without it and it only gets worse over time... I had it for nearly 2 years before it was properly diagnosed (my junior year) and it ruined my running completely, I went from running an 18 minute 5K my freshman year to a 19:30. The pain was intolerable, keeping me up at night, making everyday life painful beyond belief, and making me want to constantly scream out. Then I had a fasciotomy done on all four compartments of each calf in the fall of 2006 and for awhile it was better. However, the fascia scarred back over and I redeveloped CECS shortly after surgery, although this is apparently very rare to have happen. This summer I had the fasciotomy re-done along with a partial fasciectomy where they actually remove part fo the fasica to try and ensure that the tissue will not scar back over the cuts in the fascia.
Now, for once (4 years after developing it) I have finally been able to enjoy exercise without those same nagging pains. My suggestion to anyone that has this develop and has been diagnosed thoroughly via the pressure tests, to get the surgery and not give up! Honestly, it has made a world of difference, I had some of the highest pressures that my surgeon and sports med doctors had ever seen and really I shouldn't have been able to run when I had it and if it hadn't been treated I can only imagine the effects it could have had. The pressures that are exerted on the nerves in the calf could result in permanent damage. The surgery done this summer has had much better results than my first round, three months since my surgery I have had only slight discomfort every now and then, but it feels only like muscle soreness rather than the indescribable pain prior to surgery. Directly after surgery (with all compartments being released) I was able to walk albeit very painfully and only a short distance, but over the week after surgery, the distance grows greater and the pain slowly subsides and is slight comparatively to CECS itself. I had to take a month off from all exercise aside from walking of course, which is suggested during that time to strengthen the muscles (only walking with mild to no pain of course, don't try anything crazy) but after that month I spent two weeks of biking and light exercise, weights, and swimming and those other sorts of cross-training. After those two weeks I started running again very slowly, building up to actually going on 5 mile runs today and making sure to stretch plenty before and after, which I have found to be very helpful in relieving tightness and any pains in my calves.
The surgery is wonderful but I recommend finding a surgeon who has done the procedure plenty because if they don't know what they are doing with this it is easy to hit a nerve and mess it up. My surgeon has performed this procedure hundreds of times and was wonderful in explaining everything to me along with the follow-up and of course advice on how to get stay healthy post-operation and getting back into running, something which for awhile I was afraid I would never be able to do again.