I had wanted a pair of these shoes for quite awhile but the price was way out of my budget.  I was thrilled to find them on sale online a few weeks ago and promptly ordered a pair.  I normally wear a size 8.5 in women's shoes, but accidentally ordered a 9.  Turns out that it's OK to have 1/2 size bigger, at least for now.  I wear them both with and without socks.

I suffer from kidney disease which is causing my abdomen to swell slowly and therefore brings strain on my lower back muscles.  After only a week of wearing these shoes, I literally have no lower back pain.  I don't know what it is about them, but they sort of force you to stand up straight and tuck your stomach in, but not in an obvious way, you don't even realize you're doing it.

The second thing is, my feet have very low arches, standing for a long time was causing not only my lower back to ache, but my feet would cramp terribly.  Now I can walk/stand for as long as I like without anything other than normal fatigue.

They look a little goofy if you're sitting, because the heels are so thick.  But when you're standing, they look like any other shoe.

The positive side to all of this is that I like wearing them so much that I'm much more active, it's fun to walk around because it's almost like gliding.  I haven't tried the slow running yet, but plan to eventually (once I find a good sports bra).  The biggest adjustment I had to them is going down stairs, your balance is different so it takes a little getting used to.

I had no "breaking in" time at all with them, I put them on the day after I got them and wear them all day long with only good results.