many eons ago, when i was just a young lass. ok, a few years ago when i was a drunk WSU coed, i stepped oddly off of a curb at the pea and lentil festival and ended up w/what was described by the ER doc as a "3rd degree/severe sprain of my right ankle" hurt so badly i wanted to puke. crutche all the time for 1 week, off and on for the second. used the lab bench to hobble around the 3rd week. by the 4th week i was walking w/a good limp but moving pretty well. good luck!