Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I am a stay-at-home-mom of a typical energetic 2-year old, who likes to chase and get into all sorts of trouble. My husband is gone for work 50-75% of the time, and so when I broke my leg last week, it became a complete crisis. Having JUST moved to a new city (and therefor having not yet established any sort of support system), my parents had to cash in vacation days and drive several hours to come help me. Crutches had caused underarm bruising in just a matter of 2 days' use. I spent $50 on padding (Crutcheze, purchased here, very nice), but is there really anything that would make crutches less miserable? Short answer: no. Sure, they're in the way, and clumsy, and painful, and make it impossible to carry anything...but when you add in having to be the sole parent of a 2-year old, they're just not an acceptable answer. I needed something that would allow me to scoop up my toddler should she fall, chase after her when she's gotten into her head that it's a good idea to ride the dog again, and navigate the steps that are at the front and back entrances to my home. I need to BE A MOM. Dogs need to be let outside, the laundry isn't going to do itself, meals need to be cooked, hot water boiled, floor vacuumed.... I need to BE A HOMEMAKER. And parents can't take off 6 weeks to stay in my home and do it all for me. I jumped on to Amazon 6 days after the injury, already ready to trade in the crutches for any other option, and was actually looking for one of those knee wheely scooter things, when I saw this. I began reading the reviews, and became intrigued and hopeful...but it was another reviewer, also a mother to a young child, who stated she had gained her independence and, for all intents and purposes, her ability to "be a mom" again, that sold me. It's not a small expense, and as we are a single-income family, that was a concern. However, a few reviews mention getting their Dr to write a prescription for the IWalk, and submitting a claim for it to insurance...so that is what I will be doing. I just received this iWalk less than an hour ago (I've been waiting for Tammy the Mail Lady ALL MORNING), and as soon as it came, I promptly followed the instructions to watch the online videos for assembly and fitting. The videos go a bit quickly, so be prepared to hit the "pause" button as you follow along, but watching them is much easier and user-friendly than the available pdf download. I had it assembled and fitted within 10 minutes. My first attempts with it were very unstable, as I felt that only half of the "foot" pad was making contact with the floor. I soon realized that this was (of course) due to user error. I hadn't followed the advice of starting out with the crutch a bit shorter (they advise starting out with the crutch short enough so that your good leg is bent at a slight angle while you learn and acclimate your body's balance). Once correcting the height of the crutch, it took several laps around the living room, concentrating on keeping my steps shoulder-width apart, but soon became comfortable enough to walk without holding onto the pommel on the front of the crutch for balance. Finally, I was able to PICK UP AND CARRY my daughter, along with my water bottle, and walk to bed for our nap time, where I now lay, excitement at my newfound independence spilling out onto this review. I will return with an update after several days, and weeks into use of the iWalk, but I've already told several friends, and am very optimistic that it will lessen the interruption that my injury has caused.