How to use both hands to activate the brain?

Human beings are born with a specific brain organization. Throughout our first years, laterality develops and, By seven years of age, the dominance of one hemisphere appears to have settled. Using both hands for any task is no longer a reality for adults.

From that moment on, we primarily use our right hand (if we are right-handed) or our left hand (if we are left-handed). However, using both hands in our daily activities can help stimulate the brain.

Although it is essential to allow natural laterality to develop without intervening, once established we can obtain benefits from exercising both hands. If you want to know what these advantages are and how to implement them, we will tell you in this article.

What is laterality?

Laterality is defined as the systematic tendency to use one of the two symmetrical sides of the body and one of the paired organs (hands, eyes, legs…). Most of the population shows a preference for using the right side of the body, while around 6% primarily uses the left.

Laterality is a natural process that causes one side of the brain to receive more stimulation than the other.

Each half of our body (and its motor functions) are directed by the opposite cerebral hemisphere. Therefore, Right-handed people show dominance of the left hemisphere while left-handed people show dominance of the left hemisphere.. This causes only 6% of people to prioritize using the right side of their brain, according to some studies.

In this way, by exercising one of the halves of our body much more frequently, the other becomes unused and does not develop the same ability. But, in addition, this leads to a great cerebral specialization of functions, in which One cerebral hemisphere is stimulated much more actively and frequently than the other.

Considerations

One detail must be taken into account: laterality is a spectrum. That is to say, there are people who are purely left-handed or right-handed, but the most normal thing is that they have different brain dominance for some tasks. You probably know someone who writes with their left hand and dribbles the ball with their right. Or people who are left-handed to play the guitar, but right-handed for everything else.

On the other hand, it is important to allow functional laterality to develop naturally (it is not advisable to force a child to use the opposite hand, as it can lead to various kinds of problems). Nevertheless, Ambidexterity (learning to use both hands skillfully) can bring both physical and cerebral benefits.

Benefits of using both hands

In terms of ergonomics and comfort, being able to distribute the workload between both halves of the body is also beneficial. But not only that, starting to use both hands can help us develop and stimulate our brain abilities.

Being ambidextrous improves symmetry in movements and athletic performance, so it has obvious advantages for those who practice sports or dance. The left hemisphere seems to be more related to the control of analytical functions, while the right hemisphere is more related to creativity.

The use of both hands from an early age brings multiple benefits, especially in the artistic and sports fields.

However, recent research indicates that the neurological correlate of artistic creativity is common to many disciplines. In fact, literary creativity and drawing shared neural networks in both the left and right hemispheres.

This greater functionality and coordination between the two hemispheres is more important in case of brain injury.. An ambidextrous person will have more distributed dexterity, so, a priori, damage to one of the hemispheres would cause fewer limitations.

Thus, when brain injury occurs, brain reorganization is essential, but it is not necessary to wait for such a drastic situation to begin to enhance our flexibility and capabilities.

Ways to use both hands

To gain control over the non-dominant hand, the brain has to create new neural connections. These will be the ones that will bring about the changes and will give you a new focus, awakening or enhancing skills that remained unused. To make it It is not necessary to make very drastic changes. Examples would be:

Gaining good skill with your non-dominant hand takes time and practice. Do not implement exercises in which performance is very relevant. Also, do not train during times of anxiety, since failures can increase this exponentially.Make small adaptations. If you usually open doors, close drawers, or lower blinds with your right hand, try doing it with your left.Little by little practice more complex tasks. You can train yourself to pick up cutlery, shower, or wash dishes with your non-dominant hand. Painting your nails is also a good bilateral exercise.

Practice and patience are essential

Be constant and patient. Think of yourself as learning new skills, just like a child would. Therefore, the results will come with practice.

Keep in mind that, although this is gradual, progress is not. The normal thing is that with little “training” you see more or less outstanding results. However, as you gain skill, the earning process will also slow down.

Think that, If your dominant hand “has been doing everything for decades,” the other will require time to reach the level. Practice is the key.

You might be interested…