Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I don’t like to leave a bad review, but if it prevents someone else from getting injured, it will be worthwhile. First of all this is a very solid and attractive item. The wood is beautiful and I think it is made in the USA. It also has a nice sandpaper type textured surface so that your feet don’t slip. It arrived on time and was nicely packaged. In August, I had a devastating injury to my left ankle and I have a metal plate and 12 screws holding it together. The recovery has been slow and painful and I have been pretty depressed about my limited mobility. So, buying this board seemed a good way to do some home rehab and put my ankle through some good range of motion. So last night I used the balance board in the living area of the RV I live in. For safety I was holding on to my countertop. I started off tilting my feet north,south east and west. Then I did a clock face. Then I leaned far to the right and then far to the left. It was then that the board slid very quickly on the vinyl floor and it was so fast that I lost my grip on the countertop and fell very forcefully. My left foot and big toe slammed hard into the kitchen island and I was in great pain. Today I went to Urgent Care for X-rays and I have a fracture of the metatarsal [biggest bone in the foot which connects the big toe and the big toe joint] and also some bone chips broken from the tip of my toe. Being an Urgent Care with only a PA on duty, he said he needed a radiologist to look at it because the metatarsal may be out of alignment. The radiologist won’t see it till Monday. I was scheduled to have surgery again on December 3rd to remove 2 of the largest screws. Probably that is not going happen now. It is NOT safe to use the balance board on a hard, smooth surface. The surface which touches the floor does not have any traction. It would be best to use this on a carpet. The piece that comes in contact with the floor should be rubber or other slip resistant surface Fortunately my ankle fractures and my 12 screws seem to be ok. Unfortunately, the big toe is what helps us keep our balance. So, I am in a bad situation and it has really gotten me down. I could cry. I am the first to admit that I am a klutz. For all I know, all balance boards are made the very same way. Maybe I should have known better. All I would like is to see a BIG warning on the balance board instructions that explains that the board may slip if used on a hard surface and that injured people are at especially high risk. Sorry for the long review. I guess I needed to vent.