Writing with the none dominant hand

Handwriting is not so much a part of most of our lives as it used to be. But we still use it to sign forms, as well as maybe for fun. In fact, you might have experienced your wrist getting tired to the point it cramps. But in that case, have you ever thought about switching to writing with your non-dominant hand? You might be thinking that sounds crazy since most of us will never dare to do such a thing. But maybe it could allow you to handwrite for longer periods of time. Not that anyone would need to do that, but it would solve a lot of wrist cramping.

On the other hand, if you ever decide to go with the idea, it's much easier said than done. Just because you know how to write with your dominant hand doesn't mean the motor control will be the same. In fact, your handwriting might look like a child's writing at first. It might even bring you back to kindergarten for a moment. I remember when I tried it, and it was just so frustrating. You think you can get your hand to have all this control, until you try it, and your hand just slips all over the place. The reason for this is that the motor pattern has not been built in the non-dominant hand, as it has with the other. 

Remember when you were a kid learning to write out the ABC? I'm sure you struggled with writing out the whole alphabet as a kid, but you kept trying to develop the control. That's the same with learning how to write with the non-dominant hand. Now, the best thing you could ever do to start is just try to write out your name and see what it feels like. Trust me, it's not going to be what you expect, but the cool thing is to see how those muscles are clearly doing something they aren't used to doing. Anyways, for those of you who are right-handed and write with your left hand, you will notice it is a completely different way of writing as well. Why? Because instead of pulling the pen left to right, you are now pushing it left to right. At first, it might feel like a lot of friction, but you'll get used to it the more you practice. 

Other than that, once you have written out your name once, then shake out your hand and begin writing out the alphabet. Again, you're going to notice your writing looking very shaky, because the motor control hasn't been developed. You're basically turning on muscles that haven't been used before, and it feels weird and frustrating. Now, you might be wondering why on earth you would want to do something like this. You might wonder if it's a waste of time to do such a thing. I can most certainly say it's not a waste, and it's very good for the brain.

I found that at least when I wrote with my left hand, which is my non-dominant hand, it worked my brain in a totally different way. In fact, I would get tired just writing, because I was trying so hard to just write with the most motor control possible. Now you might wonder how long it took for it to feel more natural to me, and it really only took me about a week until it started to feel more comfortable. Again, everyone is different; some people might notice it feeling better after a day or two, but other than that, it will get better with time.

On that note, it's time for you to try and pick up a pen with your non-dominant hand, and enjoy the process of feeling like a child learning to write again. Trust me, it's an amazing feeling, and at the end of the day. The growth begins to show. It's a great lesson to learn in everything you do, whether you learn a new job or hobby, it's not going to go the way you want to go the first time, but through hard work, you will begin to see progress. So many of us in life like to try to find shortcuts in life, and often they don't really lead much to anything. You will always have to put in the hard work at the end of the day.