I can write two completely different sentences at the same time, and do all manner of mirror writing (upside down while right side up, backwards while forwards, etc.). I can sew with both hands, bowl, play ping pong, and do other things with both hands. Some things I am more inclined to use one side or the other, but not everything feels natural with either side.

There is a guy in one of my classes that can use both hands and it is quite the novelty. He was showing off the other day and to be honest, being ambidextrous is pretty cool.

I wonder if there is a way for people to train themselves to be ambidextrous without needing to put one of their hands out of commission?

While being ambidextrous is a bit of a neat party trick, I imagine that it would be great to be able to switch back and forth between hands, especially when you have to write assignments. I know I get the worst hand cramps after working for a long time.

I have never met anyone who exhibits natural ambidexterity though I did actually become ambidextrous myself after I had surgery on my right hand and was forced to write with my left for months on end. It was actually a really handy skill to pick up.

I found that whenever I get pain in my right hand I can now easily switch to my right. It has really helped me regain my ability to work, even though I still have problems with my main hand. I suppose that everyone has the potential to be ambidextrous, it just takes a lot of practice.

@Azuza - That's interesting that the description of an ambidextrous person fits your dad so well.

I'm not ambidextrous, and I don't know anyone who is. Truthfully, I always thought it would have been cool to be born ambidextrous. But after reading this article, I'm kind of glad I wasn't! Learning disabilities and mental health issues don't seem to be a very fair trade off for being able to do stuff equally well with both hands.

I know I could probably become ambidextrous if I really worked at it, but I just don't care enough to actively try to learn to write with both hands.

What an interesting article! I had no idea that ambidexterity was linked to any kind of mental issues.

However, it kind of makes sense. My dad was born ambidextrous, and he has had some mental problems as an adult. He's also extremely gifted at playing the piano! I have to wonder if he would have become so accomplished at playing the piano if he was either right handed or left handed instead of being ambidextrous.

Anyway, I would be really interested in reading more about the connection between being ambidextrous and mental health issues.

Though I have tried many times to write with my left hand, I simply cannot make legible words this way. I know that left-handed people usually write upside-down, and I just cannot maneuver a pen like this.

I started trying when I broke my forearm in school. I ended up having to have an assistant take notes for me, because there was no way I could have written fast enough with my left hand, even if it had been legible.

Is there a certain trick for right-handed people to learn how to write with their left hand? I just cannot fathom a way to make it happen.

I started playing guitar at a young age. I am right-handed, so it was easy for me. When my left-handed friend asked me to teach her some chords, we quickly figured out that for her, it would be a challenge.

I have heard of some left-handed people turning a guitar upside-down to play it. That way, they can still pick with their left hand.

I had no idea how to teach her to play upside-down, so she ended up buying a left-handed guitar. She also took lessons from a left-handed teacher, and I'm sure he was way more understanding of her needs than I could have been.

@seag47 – I did the same thing, and it really is hard to get used to! Once you have it down, the rewards of ambidexterity are great, though. You never have to worry about overexerting one hand, because the other one works just as well.

After a month or so of training, I was able to click through things nearly as fast with my left hand as with my right. Dragging the mouse across the pad to move the cursor was probably the hardest thing to adjust to, because even though it didn't, it seemed as if my hand had to move in the opposite direction. The best way I know to describe the feeling is that it's like having to write words backwards so that they could be read in a mirror.

I am now fully ambidextrous. I feel like I have really accomplished something that will make my life easier.

I started working as a graphic designer at a busy office, and my right hand quickly became sore and tingly from all the clicking and dragging I had to do each day. I had to work in a hurry to keep up with the deadlines, and my hand and wrist were feeling the pain.

That's when I decided to train myself to use my left hand. I moved the mouse across my desk and made myself do all my work with my left hand.

My boss walked by my desk, glanced at the mouse, and asked, “Isn't that usually on the other side?” I told him about my plan, and he thought it was a good way to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.

It was hard at first. I could feel my brain tingling as it tried harder to process the commands. I know that I was working more slowly, but at least my boss understood why I was doing it, and he supported me.

My right hand is definitely the dominant one, but since I was young, I have worked on becoming ambidextrous.

Even as a young person learning how to write in school, I was fascinated with being able to write well using either hand.

I don't know why this is something I was interested it, but still today find myself switching hands from time to time so I am just as efficient with my left hand as well as my right.

There have been times when I am sitting next to a person who is left handed when I am eating that this has also come in handy. It is easy for me to switch to my left hand to eat so we don't keep bumping in to each other.

This has also helped me out when playing sports. I can dribble a basketball just as well with my left hand as my right.

Being ambidextrous is something that most people would not even think about or realize that I am, but I enjoy being able to accomplish most things equally well regardless of which hand I am using.

My daughter is left handed, and while this has its challenges, she is able to use both hands to do some things much easier than my son.

I think having this ambidexterity also helps her excel at playing the piano. She is an excellent pianist and can move the fingers on both of her hands equally well.

She can also pick up a pen and write legibly with either hand. If I try to write with my left hand, you can barely read it.

I think that being left handed is something that makes this easier for her than most people. There are so many things that are not made for left handed people to use, and at a young age she had to learn how to use her right hand, when her left hand was the dominant one.