Harry Houdini, Leonardo da Vinci, Robert Baden-Powell, Benjamin Franklin, and Johnny Wilkinson are all known for their ambidexterity, the ability to use both hands equally well. However, a recent study shows that children who are "mixed-handed" are twice as likely to have attention problems in school compared to their right-handed peers. Previous research also links this condition, which can be inherited but not always, to autism and dyslexia. As an ambidextrous mother of two ambidextrous daughters, I can relate to their experiences.
As someone who has used both hands equally well for as long as I can remember, I have always had perfectly equal strength on both sides. Even in ballet, I had the same strength in both legs. However, things were very different when I was in school. I was always seen as "cack-handed" and "stupid" by my peers and teachers, which resulted in teasing and trouble. The nuns at my convent even forced me to write with my left hand behind my back and would tie it in that position if I didn’t comply. It wasn’t until I was 20 years old that I was diagnosed with dyslexia, a term I had never heard before. Though it gave me a better understanding of myself, it didn’t make things easier.
However, with my daughters, the outcome was different. We noticed that my elder daughter was ambidextrous when she was three years old and her playgroup requested an assessment due to her difficulty with writing. While she mainly writes with her right hand, she is very severely dyslexic. However, she had the benefit of some excellent specialist teachers and eventually studied classics at Oxford. Meanwhile, my younger daughter is dominant right-handed, like most ambidextrous people who tend to favor one hand.
In our family, "thick" or "stupid" is not a part of our vocabulary, and we look at being ambidextrous as a positive trait. It is highly useful in many tasks – for example, I used to do a lot of sculpting, and it made the process much easier. It can also be beneficial for activities where one hand gets tired, as we can simply switch hands. Overall, being ambidextrous has its challenges, but we don’t let it define our abilities or intelligence.
