Wow - this was a topic that generated a lot of interest. We have had over 150 comments left on the original article and more than 25,000 words written by members about their experiences. Here are a few extracts to give you a good flavour of the typical feedback:
- As a child I was forced to sit by myself when taking tests, because the teacher thought that I would cheat because I was left handed; that was after she tried on several occasions to put the pen in my right hand. Plus, I was told to turn my paper a certain way that did not work for me. Am sure the experience has left my scarred in some way or another. I felt ashamed that my teacher would think that I would cheat after spending hours learning my vocabulary words. And I became a shy little girl that did not often raise her hand, because to write on the chalkboard because everyone would see that I was different.
- My grandfather was left-handed and was forced to write right-handed as a child. He had a bad stutter. Then he got polio and his right hand was crippled. He was allowed to write left-handed and lost his stutter.
This is a long one but is a great example of exactly what we were talking about in our original article and I guess a lot of people have had similar experiences, though maybe not quite as pronounced. Our thanks to Alan MG for sharing
- From the age of 5 to the age of 26 I considered my self right handed and right footed and right eye dominant, but I suffered very bad symptoms which were detrimental to my learning through all those years. (including poor concentration, poor memory recall, reading difficulties and a very neurotic personality and physical tiredness) After visiting a family doctor when I was 19 and getting no diagnosis or cure I began what was to become 7 years of searching for the cause , I finally found out by chance discovery it was because of misuse of my co-ordination and that I should be doing everything left handed and left footed, and even the muscles on my face had been affected causing me to find it difficult to smile properly etc. With a theoretical understanding of the cause of the symptoms now gained, I proceeded to use my left hand for everything and walk to my left foot with a realization that this must never stop if I wanted to recover. Gradually the symptoms went away. Handwriting with the subordinate hand, all my life up to then had been the main inducer of the symptoms, possibly because of the levels of concentration and dexterity required for handwriting. Muscular imbalance and force of habit had disguised my natural tendency to the left. It was just as important to reduce use of my right hand and right foot, as it was to transfer duties to my left hand and left foot to enable recovery.
- Recovery took me many years partly because of my age(26 at the time, I am now 48), the duration and intensity of the symptoms suffered and the disruption in social interaction during what should have been my formative years. Basically having to learn many things that the neurosis induced had stopped me learning. Now I can get on with people a lot better, and be a much more efficient worker and am a lot happier.
The cause of the symptoms was much more difficult for me to find as I had retained no memory of being coerced into writing with my right hand at school in 1967 when I was 5 years old. It must have happened from bigotry in the school system in my country (Scotland) at the time because my parents never showed any attitude towards handedness ever.
There are many more stories like his and we would like to thank all members who have shared their experiences and hope they help others realise that "it is not just them".
Alan referred to some research by Dr Barbara Sattler, who we have mentioned before and who Keith and Lauren went to meet in Luxembourg not long ago to give a presentation (seen on the left in the picture, with us on the right). She has written a book and lots of research papers on this and there are some good links here (if a bit technical). Unfortunately the book is only available in German but this is a summary of what she has to say about the effects of forcibly changing a child's handedness...
Converting handedness does not result in a change in cerebral dominance but rather a multifaceted cerebral disturbance or damage. This can result in the following primary disorders:
disturbances in memory for all three areas of information processing (encoding, storage, and recall);
- difficulty in concentration (early fatigue);
- difficulty in reading and spelling
- spatial disorientation (e.g. confusion of left and right);
- speech problems ranging from stammering to stuttering;
- fine motor disturbances evident in writing and other activities requiring precision.
The primary consequences can then go on and transform into secondary consequences:
- feelings of inferiority;
- shyness; introversion; overcompensation;
- defiance to belligerence; braggadocio; provocative behavior;
- bed-wetting;
- nail-biting;
- emotional problems that can last into adulthood with neurotic and/or psychosomatic symptomology; and personality disturbances
So basically - if you are thinking of making a left-handed child write right-handed, DON'T DO IT!
You can use this link to see all the original comments for yourself or add your own feedback
Comments 68
When i was young, I used to get headaches all the time due to the strain of trying to concentrate. I wondeted why school seemed so much easier for most. I have had most of the side effects listed! Once again,Thank you all!!!
Thanks for sharing your stories. My situation is a bit different. No one forced me to switch from writing with my left to my right hand. This all started in kindergarten with me when I notice writing with my left hand, I use to always hold the pencil so tight I got blisters on my middle finger. Writing with my left hand always caused a lot of tension and straining. Therefore, when I wrote with my right hand I notice a sense of ease. I am guessing it took me about 3 years to effectively write with my right hand. However, even though I write with right hand, I still write like a left handed person. I recently started back using my left hand by shooting a basketball just out fun and curiosity to see how it felt. It took me less than a year to feel comfortable with shooting with my left hand, which was not long since I am originally a left handed person. Even until this day if I try to write with my left hand, not only will I experience those recurring tension memories but it feels so awkward now because I've been writing with my right hand for so many years. It is so good to know that other people in the world experience rare situations as such growing up so one does not have to feel like they are weird. The strange part about my upbringing is my relatives probably did not know what hand I wrote with as a child.
I must say, that forced to use right hand has only been a problem for my writing. I have had many advantages of if it. I am a dentist, I must say one the worst things was years ago , that I couldn't be a dentist left-handed . I trained my right, writing using right hand to do everything, and to day it has been a great advantage for me using both hands. Many "right-handed" envy me.
Steen.
I guess for me the biggest impact was emotional and psychological. My quirks resulting from switching handedness landed heavy blows on my self steem. I often got laughed at. In hopes to improve myself, I started to practice writing with my left hand again.
I'm showing this article to my husband tonight and we'll discuss what we need to do for our daughter's future. But...how to proceed? I think we need to see a specialist in this field but the local options are not good. Does anyone have an idea of who to see....maybe in Hong Kong? Any suggestions are welcome.
I was brought up in the Soviet union. I am 42 years old now. Children go to school at 7 years of age and until 1985 it was unheard of that someone would get away with being leafhanded. I was forced to write and eat with my right hand, but continued using my left hand for painting, for cutting, my handbag is always on my left shoulder.
I still write with my right hand, but my handwriting is constantly changing, and it is looking like child's writing. My facial muscles have been affected as well, so I cannot smile properly, which is bothering me a lot. This is probably the reason I am shy and not very sociable.
I wonder if after so many years I can change it.....
I also used to bed wet a lot around that time and so I guess this is when my depression started. I used to nail bite as a child too and was a very withdrawn shy child right up until my teens. I became quite stubborn and defiant the older I got and have been told I can be neurotic too.
I was unable to read or write until the age of eight when I had one-to-one support. My writing is still messy to this day but within six months of having extra help I was top at spelling and haven’t put books down since. However I still struggled in education afterwards as it seemed I didn't process information like everyone else did. It would take me a while to understand things and get passed the 'brick wall' I faced, crying tears of frustration all the time whilst doing my school work believing I was thick.
I still feel it has had an impact on my life in adulthood but I have learnt to deal with it. I get physically tired very easily and have poor concentration plus I have learnt to live with depression on a daily basis. I do have a really good memory for details though as my first memory is of having my nappy changed.
I have also been lead to believe that I have enforced dyspraxia as I am very clumsy and my spatial awareness is poor but the dyspraxia effects my process of thinking mainly. I was told that being forced to change your handedness is like a brain injury where your brain has to re-wire itself. Which makes sense with the fact that I couldn’t read or write until I was eight and people who have a brain injury or have suffered a stroke sometimes have enforced dyspraxia too.
I have also wondered if my difficulties in maintaining some friendships and relationships over the years has been due to being forced to change my handedness. Still I don't think I should have suffered the way I have unnecessarily but I guess I wouldn't be the person I am today who knows. However I am considering going back to being left handed.
I am very anxious to hear your update. My son will be 14 this month. There are so many similarities in your post, with what I am now researching. We never forced his hand dominance, but just recently found out that he was naturally a lefty but changed on his own to be like everyone else. Now reading the side effects, everything makes sense. Just wondering where do we go from here?
Thanks
About 4-5 yrs ago, i am 63 now, i started to learn about left brain vs. right brain and the connection to handedness. I am an architect and was designing a rather complex addition to a project in Montana for a sister of mine. It kept seeming like we were looking at things completely different, even though we had grown up in the same house and had same family background. I thought maybe it was just normal architect vs client, but it seemed like more. I started to Google right brain vs left brain which i didn't know much about.
The list of right brained tendencies vs. left brain made it pretty clear. I was looking at the project whole and she was looking only at the individual pieces. After learning more about cross dominance i happened upon research by Dr Barbara Sattler, who you have mentioned. I have many of the inherent emotional / psychological problems associated with the change in handedness for writing / drawing that she and you list. Personally i think the change in drawing hand was the biggest drawback as an adult for me.
I never seemed to be able to do schematic sketches in 3-d very well. I felt like i would get out of scale or proportion and need to get to the drawing board w/ tools like a parallel rule and triangles. I had learned mechanical drawing in 9th grade and it became my favorite subject and probably the biggest reason i became an architect.
The lack of sketching ability was the thing i felt i missed most in life as part of the design process in the beginning of any projects. It hinders the design process. Funny thing was after my mother died and we found a kindergarten report card of mine where the teacher said i enjoyed using my drawing ability to express my creativity. That was before the switch in hands.
After seeing the work of Dr. Sattler, i worked at changing my handedness for both drawing and writing (cursive and printing) It has been 4-5 years since i have been practicing lefty.
I can sketch much better lefty. I feel like i see proportion and scale better. I start doodling and the drawings become much more than they ever would have righty. My writing seems more artistic but i can't seem to make the jump to using it every day, so far just for practice. It seems like a brain thing. I recently changed my preferred hand for a computer mouse to lefty and started playing computer games for hand/eye coordination. Games like pool, ping pong, pong and 3-d pong.
i have been trying recently to draft lefty and paint and see where it goes. I am semi retired and not working in architecture for most of 6-7 years.
In some strange way i always wanted to be a painter (fine arts) but dismissed it because i didn't feel like i could draw well enough. I have both an uncle and aunt that were artists, on my mothers side.
Yesterday in reading Alan’s story from above, i noted his talk of the importance of feet, and footwork. I realized if i kicked something i did it right footed. I learned most things when i was young left handed but not all. Originally i threw a baseball right handed because they gave me a right handers glove. My father noticed that if i was in the outfield i dropped my glove and threw left handed. After that i became a little league pitcher w/ numerous shutouts, no hitters, and all star games for 4-5 years in different leagues. I played basketball, football, tennis, pool, bowling, and racket ball, all left handed and did well in most when i was in high school.
I have been waiting for a change in myself from the changes i have made but as of yet no big aha. Alan said it took him many years, how many is many Alan, how long does this take, 5 years seems like a lot.
My family, who give the opposite of support think that the change in handedness thing for writing is not a big deal or they think i am just ambidextrous like my mother, and a left handed sister thinks she is. Mostly they are all in denial of being left handed.
I think this may have been a childhood trauma for me between the forced change against my will, my father supporting it saying i have to do what the nun's want, and siblings saying it doesn't matter.
Where's the rest of the research that shows the light at the end of the tunnel???
Dr Sattler's work suggests trying to change back is not good for some. Anybody have any input.
Sorry for the long winded story,
thanks in advance
Jack
Interesting discussion topic.
Here is what I don't understand about all of this. I am a musician and have learned to play piano, trombone, violin and guitar. The violin and guitar in particular use the left hand for the fingering (I'm right handed). Why then was it no problem for me to learn those with my left hand (when clearly more more coordinated hand would be the better hand for fingering)? And why are there many right-handed musicians with world class technique on the violin, guitar? Seems to me that given writing is a learned skill it shouldn't matter which hand you start with as long as you are consistent. Any thoughts on this?
I went to a private school and did an Arts 4 yr bachelors degree at a reputable Cdn university. It may have been the wrong degree. I discovered once a few times long ago. The precision I had being left handed when tossing an innocuous object (ie. a piece of gum), I could often get remarkable target when throwing at a trash can (once thirty feet away).
I was informed that dexterity is associated with the dominant hand and power associated with the non-dominant (clinical neuro-psychiatrist - close family friend). I was told I could in fact be left handed. All the sports I played would of described this.
I am currently enrolled in a 4 yr biochemistry degree. My problems sitting at a desk and reading were leading to excruciating pain along my muscles of medial thoracic spinal areas (rear deltoid and trapezius). About 2 hrs ago, I began searching with tips to change (Google search for 9-tips on wiki-answers). The results are so far INCREDIBLE!!!!!
The pain has immediately begin to recede and now I must learn how to stand with my left foot forward. Handwriting is a real chore, but it feels amazing and already, I've begun to analyze how the techniques of left handed writing goes. And so far the remainder of my searches or proving my analyses correct. At least, it confirms my subjective feelings, which came before reading any such conformation).
I really not now much more I can say. The rest is as they say, leaves me speechless.
Why did this take so long? I had to reach back into my memory and I recall that before the private schooling, I was in a French immersion public school. I remember when being taught cursive for the first time, I was equally as bad with the right as I was with the left. But my teacher had a job to do, so he exhaustingly chose right. However, I always played hockey left handedly ;) .... ironically enough my disturbances forced the school to choose my being taught elsewhere. From there my right hand merely continued. I even practiced had to look at things left or right from a visual side dominance of my eyes - y'know, to get the 'feel' of it (as crazy as that may sound).
I feel so much better and any tips anyone can give me is so, so so so, appreciated.
Thanks to not being alone.
Also today (before I actually did research on handedness) I decided I wanted to learn how to write with my right, so I spent an hour or so practicing writing with my right. Is this inadvisable? As in, would it affect me negatively, cognitively speaking?
After a very unsuccessful school life full of failures my parents decide the next logical step was for me to go to university. I'm so tired right now I can't even think. When the professor shows something, everyone gets it right away but I have no idea what they're talking about. I stammer. Can't tell right from left when driving. Can't drive at all when stressed (I can't judge distances). And is the writing center 8 hours a day trying to write essays. The helpers there red line most of it.
I'm so tired. I had depression before and I don't want to go through that again. If I use my left hand I wonder if I can fix this somehow. Trying it.
https://wasioabbasi.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/never-force-left-handed-child-to-be-right-handed/
Has anyone in similar circumstances relearned how to write/eat/use their left hand as dominate?
Thank you kindly
Yet who's got the worst handwrite? A right-handed kid who doesn't even hold a pencil correctly. He keeps his fist completly clasped like if he's stabbing something.
Your handwrite reflects your personality; not your dominant hand.
www.zoomerang.com/Survey/WEB22CVTAQ3ZDV
I'm now 20 and studying Physics, currently on an exchange year in Germany - as I have done for the past few years I use a computer for most of my writing nowadays but still left-handed for writing. Strangely though I have an odd tendency with my hands - essentially my left is "precision" and my right is "power" - so I will write, paint, play pool/snooker and such with my left hand but use my right for golf, darts etc (and even some low-intensity things like using a computer mouse, TV remote, Wii controller and such). - and cutting things for cooking is variable day-to-day it seems!
As a side note, an interesting coincidence - I was actually born on International Left Handers' Day! So I guess it's only appropriate that I am left handed!
I did have some problems with slammering too, but was able to overcome it. It is difficult when so many things are designed the wrong way about, at least now computers give you the option to be Lefthanded. Mine is set for use with my left hand as well as the pointer on the screen the otherway about.
children to use their right hand although plainly left-handed. At
infant school, when first beginning to use a pencil, I was forced to
use the pencil with my right hand. The result was a distressing
stammer and consequent bullying by some other kids. My mother came to
see the Headmistress and read her the riot act regarding my treatment
and ever after I was allowed to be left-handed in writing and other
activities. Thank you Mum!
We enjoy reading your articles, it help us alot to understand LH. Thank you
Anyone have any answer to that?
-Tj
I have the IQ of a genius, but my second grade teacher tried to make me write right handed. It didn't work. Other teachers told me I would never have pretty penmanship. I had the best of all the class.
Let lefties turn their paper in the direction that is comfortable for them. They will do it "right." I ordered some left handed scissors for my grandson who is in K. I do know that it is important for lefties to have these. I didn't have them and had to look in an awkward way at the line as I cut things.
Never criticize a leftie. Make them know they are as smart and capable and the other righties.
I spent years feeling inadequate, made to look and feel different that I was not 'good enough'. I recognise and sympathise with so much that has been said it horrifies me.
Dr Sattlers' research is almost alarming I recognise so many of the points she makes within myself. Although it has taken me the best part of 50 years to overcome most of my problems. I believe I am reasonably well balanced now, but do still suffer with crippling insecurity, stammering under stress, lack of concerntration at times couldn't read until I was ten, early nail bitter and definately do the over compensating bit to an alarming degree and I know I am doing it too.
I also have a husband that thinks joining the left handed club is a joke another bandwagon for people to jump on. He is right handed and really doesn't have a clue how arkward life can be sometimes. Sure we have all learnt to adapt in our own ways it becomes second nature. But a little bit of understanding of our plight could go along way. It does often make me angery that right handed people can be so condescending of us lefties. Maybe I am the product of a disfunctional family or is it just coincidence I am left handed, I will never know.
To end on a lighter note I was taught to knit by a right hander as a consequence now knit both left and right handed (at the same time), following a pattern is very slow going and confusing. It was my first jumper, when my mother realised something was wrong I had doubled everything because I was knitting both directions (to great hilarity as my arms would have been about 3' long). I have to really concerntrate to knit to a pattern even now. Unless you are a knitter you would not have a clue what I am talking about.
However, I am older than Alan MG and never heard of, or experienced, such practices in my part of Scotland (Fife), at any rate . In fact, my Primary 7 teacher made sure all of us 'corrie-fistit' pupils in the class had special left-handed nibs on our pens for our weekly exercise in writing in ink.
No-one could understand why I could sleep so much, far more than was necessaary of healthy, until a doctor diagnosed depression; the medication has helped but I still felt something wasn't quite right.
Having read your article and relating to many of the symptoms, I now realise that having to unlearn and relearn how to do things in a RH world has been a major factor in the mental exhaustion and subsequent need to sleep!
Just recently my husband complained bitterly after trying to use my left-handed scissors and I quietly pointed out to him that, 'now he has some insight into how difficult it can be being LH and having to adapt to a RH world.
Thank you for your hard work in producing the newsletters and sourcing LH items - it is much appreciated :)
Louise
I hope that the book written by Dr. Barbara Suttler becomes available in English, I do share a lot of the issues listed such as, confusion of left and right, difficulty in reading and spelling, nail biting and many more. One trait which I find to be useful is defiance as it has enabled me to achieve.
The information I have learned from the newsletter has helped many people including through me, my clients. I am a Psychotherapist and Counsellor, over the past few months I have recognised some of the issues with my clients and been prompted to ask "Are you by any chance left handed" each time so far the answer has come back as "yes why?" The information is changing peoples lives from distress to understanding and finding some answers to their problems.
i think now parents and teachers had better gone to another level and started accepting the children the way they are because its nature for some one to use their left hands or foot other wise some teachers especially in the beginning classes can make left handed children s lives a misery.
love u all.
veron Uganda.
When my sister was born, she is 7 years older than me, I stayed with an aunt who tried to force me to write with my right hand. This was only for 2 months, while my sister was sick, but it had such an effect that when I returned to school I had to have extra hand writing lessons, thankfully with my left hand. These were labourious and painstaking drills and because it was a special class it made me feel different to the others. To make matters worse we had to use fountain pens which I found out in later left are normally always set for a right hander. When you use them left handed you tend to scratch the paper. As an adult I love gel pens because the ink flows so well.
But growing up in a right handed world I had to train myself to use my right hand.
Eating at the table my father insisted that I eat "right handedly" i.e.knife in the RH, fork in the LH. But then I would change the knife to the LH for buttering bread. Luckily I was allowed to eat my pudding with my left hand. (Perhaps it is not so obvious when only using one hand at the table).
There were no LH scissors back then so had to learn to use them LH. No easy task when you have a dominant left eye.
I got a job in the telecoms industry and found that all the equipment is set for RH. So I had to learn to use pliers etc in my RH. Which I still do to this day.
I have an excellant memory for the facts and figures for my job but I cannot remember dates, I forget birthdays, anniversaries etc and sometimes even forget how old I am.
On the bright side there are some distinct advantages for the LH person.
1) Hold the phone in the RH write with the LH
2) Move mouse with the RH write with the LH
3) All my personal files are set LH so I know if someone (RH) has touched them.
4) I can paint walls with both hands, so when one arm is tired I can change over.
Summing up I believe that it is a RH world but LH people have an advantage because we have to learn to adapt and at some points in our life we have to use both hands.
I do not believe in changing a left hand person to right hand however, I believe when left handed people are exposed to right hand equipment we can adapt because of our brain patterns which is totally different than a right handed person's patterns especially speech patterns. We can become ambidextrous and more balanced. This is just my opinion and would appreciate any comments.
I sew left-handed but knit right (my granny said there were no left-handed patterns?!) and I was in my 30's before I learnt to crochet by a friend teaching me mirror-wise. I wonder if there will ever be a left-handed sewing machine.
I have one ambidexterous son, one cross-lateral daughter (she was the only one who could swim straight up the pool on her back!), and another left-handed son but all three write left-handed. I wonder what my grandchildren will be?
When I was 22, I 'relearned' after buying a book called Left-handed Knitting. Soon I was completing projects, that Mother considered 'too difficult' for herself. Yet she would still ask if I 'Still knitted Lefthanded."
She writes with her left hand but everything else she does 'right handed' i.e. volley ball, football, eats.. her right hand is her dominant hand.
I think that by my being left handed and by handing her things diagonally i.e. from left hand to left hand that she is left handed but not a 'true' left hander. Any thoughts......
I don't think that you as a left handed person made your daughter lefthanded. I have the same situation in one of my sons, the eldest one writes with his left hand, but for other things he uses his right hand. I don't think I caused this, because I am a right handed person.
My mother taught me to knit. She was right handed and I am not. Consequently despite the fact I enjoy this craft activity to this day I am the world's slowest knitter as it feels very stilted to me. I suppose I could re-train myself - someone in my knitting club has done this - but am too busy at the moment to concentrate on this. Maybe when I retire!!!
Well, they finally found a left handed desk that was wobbly and ugly. To make it worse, they made me sit at that desk OUTSIDE of the classroom. that;'s right, outside of the room. The teacher would send a classmate outside of the room to make sure I hear the lessons.
This effected me for years, but i am glad I stayed true to my left hand.
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