Many people do not really notice us lefties because well the majority is right-handed, however if they do notice us we get bombarded with comments like: “How can you write like that?“, “OMG, you are left-handed? *in a very shocked way*, “Did you know that left-handed people die earlier than right-handed people?“ The list goes on and on. It has of course been scientificly proven that left-handed people do NOT die earlier than right-handed people, but what is it to live in a right-handed dominant world in today’s society as a left-handed person? Well this is a question that I can best answer by giving an example from my everyday life:
Usually my morning routine is pretty simple and there are no typical signs of having problems in my everyday life due to my left-handedness since everything at my place is placed according to me. However the first time I notice that I am different is when I either use an escalator or use stairs since I use the left side and most of the time this is either the quick path meaning I need to walk fast even though I do not even want to, or sometimes the left side is used for the opposite direction meaning people do look really annoyed when I do that but, well, it is in my nature. Therefore in order to avoid that problem I need to prepare myself mentally to walk on the right side which trust me is not really ideal since I need to go against my nature. Nevertheless I believe I manage it quite well.
Another obstacle is finding a left-handed seat at uni, sometimes an impossible task. I do not mind sitting on a right-handed seat, since we lefties are used to adapt to the right-handed dominant world anyway, however sometimes I really want to support my left hand on a table instead of having hand cramps but it’s not always possible. Additionally when taking notes at uni the wire from the notebook is always in the way, so I really need to adjust my hand in a really weird position in order to take notes while trying to keep an acceptable way of writing. There are left-handed notebooks out there but they are very hard to find and are generally more expensive than the right-handed ones so I got used to writing like a person who just got taught how to write. Then on the way home I encounter the same escalator or stairs obstacle until I’m at home everything is back to the way I usually have them.
There are countless other things that I do not experience every day, but they are worth mentioning. For example, the struggle while eating more specifically when cutting meat: most left-handed people cut with their left hand while holding the fork in their right hand and afterwards they switch back to using the fork in their left hand which usually works out perfectly, I on the other hand adapted to keep my fork in my left hand and cut with my right hand which trust me is a struggle but it feels weird for me to switch and cut with my left hand. Another struggle is using right-handed instruments in which I do well by using them even though there are also left-handed instruments for us, however unfortunately they cost more so it’s easier to adapt the right-handed instruments. Scissors are sometimes a real problem and when I try to cut something I either make a mess of the edges of the piece that I cut or I do not cut in a straight line. The same is true for cutting bread.
However even though there are these obstacles that us lefties have to go through we are lucky to live in a society in which left-handedness is accepted and we are not forced to use the right hand. And I hope this article helped you righties to understand our daily struggles we have to go through, so the next time you are annoyed that someone is walking slowly on the left side remember this person is quite possibly left-handed.