Please realize that everyone is different. We all have different learning styles and processes. Don't allow yourself to be deterred by other people's experiences, because yours could be different and you won't know until you try.
If you have a guild or a couple of quilt shops in your area, ask if anyone has EQ7 installed. Find out if they could give you a demo, or maybe let you play around with it for an hour. I love EQ, I use it constantly. I showed my mom a few things and she decided she just had to have it. I put the word out and found a quilting friend who had purchased it but ended up not using it as much as she thought she would. We bought it from her for a very reasonable price.