No, the other left
December 9, 2010 12:03 PM Subscribe
How did you learn left and right?
I am in my 40's and believe it or not, I still have a really hard time with left and right. If I have to give someone directions to me house, for example, I have to visually make the drive and use my right hand (because I am right-handed) as my compass. If someone needs to turn leeft I imagine where my right hand is in relation to this turn, and visualize that it's on the other side
Same with getting gas. My car is right handed, meaning the tank is on the right side, so when I'm pulling into the station, I have to remember where my right hand is and then find a pump.
I think this is crazy and I very often get it wrong, which is even crazier! I can never give a quick answer to "is it on the right or left" because I have to go through the process.
So, I obviously missed the class on this. Can you remember how you learned left and right? Can anyone suggest an easier method for me? I love something rhymey like righty tighty lefty Lucy, which definitely helps with screws, but I still have to go through the motions to figure out which way is which.
I am in my 40's and believe it or not, I still have a really hard time with left and right. If I have to give someone directions to me house, for example, I have to visually make the drive and use my right hand (because I am right-handed) as my compass. If someone needs to turn leeft I imagine where my right hand is in relation to this turn, and visualize that it's on the other side
Same with getting gas. My car is right handed, meaning the tank is on the right side, so when I'm pulling into the station, I have to remember where my right hand is and then find a pump.
I think this is crazy and I very often get it wrong, which is even crazier! I can never give a quick answer to "is it on the right or left" because I have to go through the process.
So, I obviously missed the class on this. Can you remember how you learned left and right? Can anyone suggest an easier method for me? I love something rhymey like righty tighty lefty Lucy, which definitely helps with screws, but I still have to go through the motions to figure out which way is which.
I learned by playing the piano ... right hand scales go up in pitch.
Alternatively ... if you hold up your hands in front of you, palms facing outwards, and extend your thumb to a right angle ... your left hand makes a capital L ... for left.
posted by jannw at 12:06 PM on December 9, 2010
Alternatively ... if you hold up your hands in front of you, palms facing outwards, and extend your thumb to a right angle ... your left hand makes a capital L ... for left.
posted by jannw at 12:06 PM on December 9, 2010
My Mom used to tease me because until my mid-20s I often had to pause and pretend to begin the Pledge of Allegiance in order to determine right from left. (I'd grown up having to say the Pledge every day in elementary school, so the right hand over the heart gesture comes naturally when I think "I pledge allegiance to the flag....")
posted by Oriole Adams at 12:07 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Oriole Adams at 12:07 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Sesame Street.
Cartoon of an invisible hand trying to draw the letter Z. The pencil gets the first two lines correct, and then is stuck, at the bottom left hand corner, not sure how to draw the bottom line. A bunch of children give it instructions. "Draw the line to the left!" they shout. The pencil complies, but it's incorrect. "No! No! To the right!" The pencil erases the incorrect line, then draws the proper one. Now we have the letter Z, and the children cheer.
For many years, when trying to remember my right and left, I would draw an invisible Z in the air.
posted by Melismata at 12:08 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Cartoon of an invisible hand trying to draw the letter Z. The pencil gets the first two lines correct, and then is stuck, at the bottom left hand corner, not sure how to draw the bottom line. A bunch of children give it instructions. "Draw the line to the left!" they shout. The pencil complies, but it's incorrect. "No! No! To the right!" The pencil erases the incorrect line, then draws the proper one. Now we have the letter Z, and the children cheer.
For many years, when trying to remember my right and left, I would draw an invisible Z in the air.
posted by Melismata at 12:08 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Are you good with cardinal directions? If you're facing North, left is the same as west, which you can remember because they both have E as the second letter.
posted by axiom at 12:08 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by axiom at 12:08 PM on December 9, 2010
Left hand makes an L is a big help, but I am a moderately successful adult with a house and a child and I still struggle with this as well. For me, the almost insurmountable difficulty is if I have to determine left or right of something that is not facing the same way I am. If someone says "my left or your left?" I basically go insane. You are not alone, I guess I'm trying to say.
posted by Rock Steady at 12:09 PM on December 9, 2010 [4 favorites]
posted by Rock Steady at 12:09 PM on December 9, 2010 [4 favorites]
Have you tried associating your strong hand (right for me) with strong, good, easy, etc. and your weak hand with the opposite qualities?
posted by bluejayk at 12:09 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by bluejayk at 12:09 PM on December 9, 2010
Also, try remembering that you read from left to right.
posted by axiom at 12:09 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by axiom at 12:09 PM on December 9, 2010
Getting married helped :). Honestly I had to do the L finger trick for a long time. My method to learn this (and other similar tasks) is whenever I'm bored I mentally go over it. (I'm slowly trying to get better at learning which way is east if I'm facing south, etc -- though my car compass helps).
posted by ejaned8 at 12:10 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by ejaned8 at 12:10 PM on December 9, 2010
I learned that left is the side of the dinner plate where the fork is. Left and fork both have 4 letters. QED.
posted by BigVACub at 12:12 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by BigVACub at 12:12 PM on December 9, 2010
We used to stop at an intersection. I'd always plead for us to turn right, because that meant we were going to the beach. We usually turned left, which meant that we were going to take my mother to work at a restaurant. For a long time, I would visualize this intersection when I needed to figure out whether something was left or right.
Do you have something you could visualize? Other than that, I'm a fan of the above-mentioned 'left hand makes L' approach.
posted by aniola at 12:12 PM on December 9, 2010
Do you have something you could visualize? Other than that, I'm a fan of the above-mentioned 'left hand makes L' approach.
posted by aniola at 12:12 PM on December 9, 2010
i cut my hand up when i was about the age of learning left from right. the scar is on my right hand. i still have momentary brain farts wher ei have to think about it. for me, i think of it as related to handedness as well. i'm left handed and so in my mind left=strong/dominant, but my marker (my scar) is on my right hand, so it creates this mental state where both are competing for my top thought on "strong hand", if that makes any sense at all...
i will admit it's gotten a lot easier since i got married. but, i still touch my thumb to my wedding ring to double check myself.
posted by nadawi at 12:16 PM on December 9, 2010
i will admit it's gotten a lot easier since i got married. but, i still touch my thumb to my wedding ring to double check myself.
posted by nadawi at 12:16 PM on December 9, 2010
I'm 33 years old and I still sometimes have to make an L with my left hand's finger and thumb.
posted by elsietheeel at 12:16 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by elsietheeel at 12:16 PM on December 9, 2010
Um, I am not sure about how to fix the issue about right and left. Practice? The "L" on the left is good, but then you have to think...palms out or in? My right hand makes an "L" palm in, damn. Like "righty-tighty" "lefty-loosey". Ok, is that the top of the screw, or the bottom? Gaaargh.
Don't overthink it.
As far as the gas cap side of your car, try this: Don't think about it at all. Just pull into the station as it feels natural to you. Don't sweat getting it wrong. You will get it wrong a couple of times. After some time, you'll just do it right.
I am sometimes a little surprised when I pull into the gas station without thinking about it - there's a moment of minor panic, then there it is, the gas cap, on the left side, where it always is. Whew.
Something to remember is that "left" and "right" are both abstract concepts and symbolic language. They are there for communicating with others, not for your own personal use. Don't think about them.
posted by Xoebe at 12:17 PM on December 9, 2010
Don't overthink it.
As far as the gas cap side of your car, try this: Don't think about it at all. Just pull into the station as it feels natural to you. Don't sweat getting it wrong. You will get it wrong a couple of times. After some time, you'll just do it right.
I am sometimes a little surprised when I pull into the gas station without thinking about it - there's a moment of minor panic, then there it is, the gas cap, on the left side, where it always is. Whew.
Something to remember is that "left" and "right" are both abstract concepts and symbolic language. They are there for communicating with others, not for your own personal use. Don't think about them.
posted by Xoebe at 12:17 PM on December 9, 2010
I use the left hand makes an "L" trick. Sometimes trying to say which direction to turn in another language works -- I can associate gauche better than left, somehow.
I used to remember that my car's gas tank was on the opposite side from my mother's car, and it was on the driver's side because of a boring story I remembered. Then she got a new car, I had trouble filling my car, and I then learned that there's a little arrow on the fuel gauge pointing on the side the tank is on. I look at it every single time I fill up my car, which I have had for over 8 years now.
Frankly, I don't think there's a way to have it become automatic if it isn't already. I used to have to use left and right on exams, and the top of every page had a little L and R in the corners.
posted by jeather at 12:17 PM on December 9, 2010
I used to remember that my car's gas tank was on the opposite side from my mother's car, and it was on the driver's side because of a boring story I remembered. Then she got a new car, I had trouble filling my car, and I then learned that there's a little arrow on the fuel gauge pointing on the side the tank is on. I look at it every single time I fill up my car, which I have had for over 8 years now.
Frankly, I don't think there's a way to have it become automatic if it isn't already. I used to have to use left and right on exams, and the top of every page had a little L and R in the corners.
posted by jeather at 12:17 PM on December 9, 2010
I am not a Doctor, but taking over forty years to discern a binary system (that is, it has two options) seems odd beyond belief and (I say again I am not a doctor) may be representative of an underlying neurological condition. Are there any other "common" tasks you have difficulty with that other people do not?
posted by dougrayrankin at 12:18 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by dougrayrankin at 12:18 PM on December 9, 2010
I'm 33 years old and I still sometimes have to make an L with my left hand's finger and thumb.
I'm 43 and I do this every single day.
posted by anastasiav at 12:19 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
I'm 43 and I do this every single day.
posted by anastasiav at 12:19 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Ooh thanks for the L thing! Gonna try that. And thanks for linking the other thread. It's good to know I'm not alone. And weirdly, I also have no problem with east and west, just left and right.
Rock steady, I felt the same sense of insanity just by reading your post!
posted by TLCplz at 12:20 PM on December 9, 2010
Rock steady, I felt the same sense of insanity just by reading your post!
posted by TLCplz at 12:20 PM on December 9, 2010
I am 46 and still get right and left confused. It sounds like you know, as I do, which hand is right and which hand is left. (So roomthreeseventeen's suggestion doesn't really help.) The difficulty is translating that into the real world without imagining yourself standing in that location and then imagining where your right hand would be. This is the strategy I use, and, while it does cause a delay, it achieves the goal.
Harder for me, is when I am driving and someone else is navigating. For this process, I equate left with up and right with down. So, navigator says, "Turn right." I push my turn signal indicator down, then look at the dashboard, see which arrow is blinking, and turn in the direction of that arrow.
posted by hworth at 12:20 PM on December 9, 2010
Harder for me, is when I am driving and someone else is navigating. For this process, I equate left with up and right with down. So, navigator says, "Turn right." I push my turn signal indicator down, then look at the dashboard, see which arrow is blinking, and turn in the direction of that arrow.
posted by hworth at 12:20 PM on December 9, 2010
I get confused too! I think it's hereditary. From childhood, I wore bracelets on my right arm, and once I realized I could make the association, that helped. But then I got tendonitis and had to switch to wearing them on my left, so now I'm screwed all over again.
Maybe you could wear a watch or bracelets and be 'aware' of which hand you wear it on? For the ladies, the jangle noise of bracelets is nice because you don't have to look down, you can just hear which side they're on.
Another strategy - my mom "mimes" writing; she knows she's right handed, so the right hand side must be the one she moved.
I also make free use of the "this way" and "that way" system; it's easier just to tell people I get r/l mixed up, and it's surprising how often people say "me too". When getting directions while driving, I just tell people: don't use right or left, just say my side of the car, or your side of the car.
[Also: you don't have to remember your gas tank is on the right or left side, just take a look at the little fuel gauge indicator on your dash. See that little arrow? It points to whichever side your gas tank is on. (I think in some cars, in the absence of the arrow, the gas tank icon is on the right or left hand side of the dash.) ]
posted by lesli212 at 12:21 PM on December 9, 2010
Maybe you could wear a watch or bracelets and be 'aware' of which hand you wear it on? For the ladies, the jangle noise of bracelets is nice because you don't have to look down, you can just hear which side they're on.
Another strategy - my mom "mimes" writing; she knows she's right handed, so the right hand side must be the one she moved.
I also make free use of the "this way" and "that way" system; it's easier just to tell people I get r/l mixed up, and it's surprising how often people say "me too". When getting directions while driving, I just tell people: don't use right or left, just say my side of the car, or your side of the car.
[Also: you don't have to remember your gas tank is on the right or left side, just take a look at the little fuel gauge indicator on your dash. See that little arrow? It points to whichever side your gas tank is on. (I think in some cars, in the absence of the arrow, the gas tank icon is on the right or left hand side of the dash.) ]
posted by lesli212 at 12:21 PM on December 9, 2010
When I was in pre-school, the teacher said "right is the hand you write with" to me, a left-handed child. This began a multi-year belief that some people had different directions to them and that you had to ascertain with which hand a person wrote before you spoke to them of right and left and, if you don't want to appear strange, you had to look at their hands to see if there were any obvious smears of ink or graphite. I spent a lot of time memorizing people's various handednesses. Later, when they made me switch to the right hand for writing, I figured my directions had been switched. Much later, when I learned the word "chirality" and read about situs inversus in an old horror novel, I had a brief moment of wondering if I had it right correct the first time.
The L thing makes a lot more sense. Or, if you're French, you can always curl up your fingers and thumb to see which one makes a G ... for gauche.
posted by adipocere at 12:21 PM on December 9, 2010 [4 favorites]
The L thing makes a lot more sense. Or, if you're French, you can always curl up your fingers and thumb to see which one makes a G ... for gauche.
posted by adipocere at 12:21 PM on December 9, 2010 [4 favorites]
Your left hand makes an L with your thumb and pointer finger.
I had a terrible time with that as a kid, because your right index finger and thumb also make an L shape, it's just backwards. So when someone would say your left hand makes an L I would always say but the right does too! And then they would look at me with pity.
posted by crankylex at 12:22 PM on December 9, 2010 [7 favorites]
I had a terrible time with that as a kid, because your right index finger and thumb also make an L shape, it's just backwards. So when someone would say your left hand makes an L I would always say but the right does too! And then they would look at me with pity.
posted by crankylex at 12:22 PM on December 9, 2010 [7 favorites]
I'm in my mid-thirties, and I do a writing motion with my right hand (I'm a very strong rightie) to verify which side is the right. I just now realized how weird it must look to anyone who notices! But I'm glad I'm not alone in this.
posted by Shusha at 12:23 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by Shusha at 12:23 PM on December 9, 2010
When I was a tiny child, I had a red spot on the index finger of my right hand. When I needed to know which way was "right," I looked at that spot. It's been decades since that spot faded, but I still look at my right hand to orient myself. I do think a hand is useful for this, since it's pretty much always there in front of you and requires only a glance, no real thinking required. If you don't have a freckle or scar or something, a ring would be lovely.
posted by sageleaf at 12:23 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by sageleaf at 12:23 PM on December 9, 2010
When I was in 1st grade (I think) I fell at a roller rink and someone skated over my right pinkie. It swelled up to double its usual size for a couple weeks, and by the time that was over I knew my right from left.
posted by MsMolly at 12:24 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by MsMolly at 12:24 PM on December 9, 2010
the tank is on the right side, so when I'm pulling into the station, I have to remember where my right hand is and then find a pump
Did you know most gas tank indicator on your dash has a little arrow pointing to the side of the car where the tank is?
posted by rhapsodie at 12:26 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Did you know most gas tank indicator on your dash has a little arrow pointing to the side of the car where the tank is?
posted by rhapsodie at 12:26 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
My ex-wife and I ran into this exact question a couple of years ago.
My 6 year old asked "which way is left and right?"
I tried to explain that left and right changed all the time, depending upon which way you were facing, if it was 'my' left or 'your' left, facing the same way, etc etc.
My ex interrupted to say that I "had it completely wrong". Left and right never changed, rather it was the North East South West that whirled about depending upon where you were standing.
This led to a great discussion about whether or not the world was viewed as 'ants on a map' (my perspective) or 'hamster in a ball' (her perspective). I had always had a strong sense of NESW while my wife could only identify them if she were in a known location. (The road is to the north of the house, for instance.)
I encourage you to have this discussion with your SOs. :)
posted by unixrat at 12:27 PM on December 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
My 6 year old asked "which way is left and right?"
I tried to explain that left and right changed all the time, depending upon which way you were facing, if it was 'my' left or 'your' left, facing the same way, etc etc.
My ex interrupted to say that I "had it completely wrong". Left and right never changed, rather it was the North East South West that whirled about depending upon where you were standing.
This led to a great discussion about whether or not the world was viewed as 'ants on a map' (my perspective) or 'hamster in a ball' (her perspective). I had always had a strong sense of NESW while my wife could only identify them if she were in a known location. (The road is to the north of the house, for instance.)
I encourage you to have this discussion with your SOs. :)
posted by unixrat at 12:27 PM on December 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
Lots of good suggestions here, so I'll just add a tiny note that has made my life easier when getting gas, even in cars I'm very familiar with: Many cars have a little arrow next to the gas gauge to indicate which side the gas tank is on. This knowledge has saved me countless tiny panics when pulling into gas stations.
posted by rosa at 12:27 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by rosa at 12:27 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
I'm 36. I still have to think about it. Up and down never confuses me. Right and left I have to think about. Even knowing the "L" trick. I STILL have to stop and make and L with my left hand instead of my right...
posted by madred at 12:29 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by madred at 12:29 PM on December 9, 2010
I had a cherry angioma on the back of my right hand when I was a kid. It was a Red dot that I associated with my Right hand.
posted by Nerro at 12:40 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by Nerro at 12:40 PM on December 9, 2010
I struggle with this as well. I distinctly remember that I missed several days in kindergarten where this concept was covered. I remember coming back and seeing on the chalkboard 2 hands, one left and one right, and thinking, "What the heck did I miss?" I've struggled with it ever since.
What's gotten me through the hard times is getting down my right and left hand. In high school, I just had to nail that down. There's no getting past it. "That's my left hand right there. And this is my right hand" I know which hand is left and right. It also helped when I got my class ring, because I could consciously say, "My ring is on my left hand." A whole new world opened up when I discovered that I could tell if someone was engaged or married. Wow. When I'm driving, I hold up my hands to figure out what's left and right. I don't know what I would do without my hands.
The "L" thing: my sister used to like to call me loser and she would hold up the "L" to her forehead to make fun of me. It would always confuse me because I could make "L's" with both hands but she would always laugh harder when I did it with the wrong hand. Whatever, sis.
posted by bobber at 12:43 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
What's gotten me through the hard times is getting down my right and left hand. In high school, I just had to nail that down. There's no getting past it. "That's my left hand right there. And this is my right hand" I know which hand is left and right. It also helped when I got my class ring, because I could consciously say, "My ring is on my left hand." A whole new world opened up when I discovered that I could tell if someone was engaged or married. Wow. When I'm driving, I hold up my hands to figure out what's left and right. I don't know what I would do without my hands.
The "L" thing: my sister used to like to call me loser and she would hold up the "L" to her forehead to make fun of me. It would always confuse me because I could make "L's" with both hands but she would always laugh harder when I did it with the wrong hand. Whatever, sis.
posted by bobber at 12:43 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: I am seriously excited about getting in my car after work and seeing if I have this arrow next to my gas gauge. You have no idea how this will change my world!
posted by TLCplz at 12:43 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by TLCplz at 12:43 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
I have no memory of how I learned, but I do remember taking ballet classes with younger kids who hadn't yet. They got a red piece of tape on the right shoe and a blue one on the left, and my teacher would say red/blue for right/left until everyone had it sorted.
posted by clavicle at 12:49 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by clavicle at 12:49 PM on December 9, 2010
The Super Nintendo controller had two shoulder buttons: L and R. I had a special controller where you could map any button to be the turbo version of any other button. So, when I played Mega Man X, the R button was turbo for Y, so I could shoot fast. Thus, right was the side on which you you had the button to shoot quickly. The other more sinister side omg did u see what i did there was the left.
It's tangled threads of memories like these that make me realize how much of a huge nerd I am.
posted by Mons Veneris at 12:49 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
It's tangled threads of memories like these that make me realize how much of a huge nerd I am.
posted by Mons Veneris at 12:49 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
I'm not an expert on it, but it seems like your right-hand trick is kind of a crutch that prevents you from really getting an intuitive sense of right and left. It might help to purposely figure out which things are on the right or left as much as possible for situations where you don't need to, just to get more practice. For example, I am terrible at remembering phone numbers if I have them written down, because I always just look them up and never retain them. But if I try to remember a number without looking it up (even if I fail and have to look it up) then over time I will learn it. So if you're driving in your car and you turn a direction, try to think of which direction you turned without using your right hand trick, then verify it using whatever method you want. Over time you might develop more of an ingrained sense of left and right.
If I have to give someone directions to me house, for example, I have to visually make the drive and use my right hand (because I am right-handed) as my compass. If someone needs to turn leeft I imagine where my right hand is in relation to this turn, and visualize that it's on the other side
For driving specifically, left turns are turns across traffic and tend to involve turn lanes more, whereas right turns are usually easier and have turn lanes less often. Knowing that helps reinforce which ones are left and which ones are right. Note that I think of directions in terms of intersection landmarks rather than mental maps though, which is not the best way to navigate.
My car is right handed, meaning the tank is on the right side, so when I'm pulling into the station, I have to remember where my right hand is and then find a pump.
For this and similar things, for me the concepts of "right" and "left" don't really come into play. When I'm pulling into the gas station, I tend to visualize the concept of my car and the area that my gas cap is. I just know from habit where it is, which side of the car I'm standing on when I get gas, that I can see it in my driver's side rear view mirror if I leave the compartment open, and various other clues. If you asked me whether it was on the right or left, I would have to visualize the concept of the car and think about which side was the right side and which side was the left side, because generally I don't think about that any more than I think about end of my sofa in my living room faces North.
posted by burnmp3s at 12:54 PM on December 9, 2010
If I have to give someone directions to me house, for example, I have to visually make the drive and use my right hand (because I am right-handed) as my compass. If someone needs to turn leeft I imagine where my right hand is in relation to this turn, and visualize that it's on the other side
For driving specifically, left turns are turns across traffic and tend to involve turn lanes more, whereas right turns are usually easier and have turn lanes less often. Knowing that helps reinforce which ones are left and which ones are right. Note that I think of directions in terms of intersection landmarks rather than mental maps though, which is not the best way to navigate.
My car is right handed, meaning the tank is on the right side, so when I'm pulling into the station, I have to remember where my right hand is and then find a pump.
For this and similar things, for me the concepts of "right" and "left" don't really come into play. When I'm pulling into the gas station, I tend to visualize the concept of my car and the area that my gas cap is. I just know from habit where it is, which side of the car I'm standing on when I get gas, that I can see it in my driver's side rear view mirror if I leave the compartment open, and various other clues. If you asked me whether it was on the right or left, I would have to visualize the concept of the car and think about which side was the right side and which side was the left side, because generally I don't think about that any more than I think about end of my sofa in my living room faces North.
posted by burnmp3s at 12:54 PM on December 9, 2010
I know exactly how much the gas gauge will help, which is about a zillion. No more hoping you guess right when you borrow or rent a car! No more feeling like an idiot whenever you have someone in the car and you pull up to the wrong side. I think I learned this fact from ask mefi, actually, and it's been probably the most useful thing I have gained from this site.
Note that "turn your way" and "turn my way" are useful when giving directions as a passenger in a car, and -- although some mock -- less problematic than "turn left -- no, the other left".
posted by jeather at 12:55 PM on December 9, 2010
Note that "turn your way" and "turn my way" are useful when giving directions as a passenger in a car, and -- although some mock -- less problematic than "turn left -- no, the other left".
posted by jeather at 12:55 PM on December 9, 2010
I'm really horrible with this too. I'm right handed, but not strongly so, especially when I was younger and would entertain myself while bored in school by writing with both hands. Sometimes when I make the L shape I can't tell which is facing the right way (though I have no problems reading). When I need to describe where to go i just use hand motions or tap on the correct side. for instance, when navigatinv in the passenger eat of a car, I'll just tap the windo and say "turn here" or motion over the console and say "turn there". In a retail environment trying to explain what aisle something is, I face the direction and use hand motions and phrases like "go around the curve" while moving my hand in the appropriate direction. If I need to give someone directions when not in a car i usually draw them on a scrap of paper while talking and let the user pick out left and right for themselves.
When I am told to do something in regards to left and right, I've just come to accept the delay since I need to think about it for a split second.
I am not elsewise stupid, so I don't know where things went wrong with me.
posted by WeekendJen at 12:55 PM on December 9, 2010
When I am told to do something in regards to left and right, I've just come to accept the delay since I need to think about it for a split second.
I am not elsewise stupid, so I don't know where things went wrong with me.
posted by WeekendJen at 12:55 PM on December 9, 2010
When I was in second grade, I broke my left arm. I didn't forget which was which after that, but I don't recommend the method.
posted by workerant at 12:56 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by workerant at 12:56 PM on December 9, 2010
When I taught math, and had to teach "order of operations" (Please Excuse My Dumb Ass Son), I always wanted to say, "right to left". But to correct myself, I'd do the "L" trick with my left hand - up in front of a class full of mechanics and tradesmen.
posted by notsnot at 12:57 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by notsnot at 12:57 PM on December 9, 2010
dougrayrankin, I think this is actually really common. In addition to all the people in this thread who said they did/do the same thing, I know of at least five people in real life who have admitted it as well. I am better than I used to do be but I don't seem to have the innate left/right discernment that many do.
posted by kate blank at 12:58 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by kate blank at 12:58 PM on December 9, 2010
I am not a Doctor, but taking over forty years to discern a binary system (that is, it has two options) seems odd beyond belief
It's actually a fairly normal problem. The two options thing is actually, to me, the thing that makes it more difficult and not simple. I know it's one way or the other but can't remember things that only align along that binary. I was just considering getting a tattoo on my hand the other day because I am tired of not being able to make left and right "stick" in my brain. I've always felt that it was a very specific sort of dyslexia, my brain feels like a skipping record when I try to say "okay turn ... turn ... turn ... right!". I also dont know east/west but I have no problem with up/down or north/south. I can't figure out time zones ["is it earlier here or in California?"] without thinking about how the sun travels. I don't know intuitively which way to turn a key in a lock. I am very good at reading maps but I have to hold my hand out and think before I can say "turn left/right." Things that work for me
- I broke my arm in elementary school and I always remember which one I broke and that it wasn't my writing arm so that's usually where I start unless I am holding a pen.
- right turns are easy and left turns are hard [because you cross traffic] helps me differentiate them
- I wear a ring on my left hand, the hand that is not my writing hand
- I mouse with my right hand
posted by jessamyn at 1:04 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
It's actually a fairly normal problem. The two options thing is actually, to me, the thing that makes it more difficult and not simple. I know it's one way or the other but can't remember things that only align along that binary. I was just considering getting a tattoo on my hand the other day because I am tired of not being able to make left and right "stick" in my brain. I've always felt that it was a very specific sort of dyslexia, my brain feels like a skipping record when I try to say "okay turn ... turn ... turn ... right!". I also dont know east/west but I have no problem with up/down or north/south. I can't figure out time zones ["is it earlier here or in California?"] without thinking about how the sun travels. I don't know intuitively which way to turn a key in a lock. I am very good at reading maps but I have to hold my hand out and think before I can say "turn left/right." Things that work for me
- I broke my arm in elementary school and I always remember which one I broke and that it wasn't my writing arm so that's usually where I start unless I am holding a pen.
- right turns are easy and left turns are hard [because you cross traffic] helps me differentiate them
- I wear a ring on my left hand, the hand that is not my writing hand
- I mouse with my right hand
posted by jessamyn at 1:04 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
My response to the "Just make an "L" suggestion from the previous thread: As another data point, I have an uncanny sense of direction. I can orient myself in a strange city immediately, but I cannot articulate left and right. Years ago my daughter was in a bike accident. In the ER, the doc was giving her a neuro exam and when my daughter had some difficulty with left and right the doc told her to hold up her hands to make an "L."
My daughter and I both held up our hands with the palms facing us.
I think it's genetic.
posted by Floydd at 1:06 PM on December 9, 2010
My daughter and I both held up our hands with the palms facing us.
I think it's genetic.
posted by Floydd at 1:06 PM on December 9, 2010
My work gloves are usually labeled "L" and "R", because the when I'm up in the air holding heavy things, making an "L" with my fingers or pretending to write (my usual tricks) don't work so well. Oddly then converting my right to Stage Left isn't a problem. If you're ever dealing with boats or planes, once you figure our right and left, you can remember that left, port, and red are each shorter words than right, starboard, and green.
posted by Morydd at 1:26 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by Morydd at 1:26 PM on December 9, 2010
Both my thumbs make "L"s. Unless I look at them too long, like a couple seconds; at which point I start to forget what "L" even looks like. My left hand is the one with the big scar on it, if that scar ever fades I'm screwed.
Don't even get me started on 9s and 6s.
posted by fshgrl at 1:27 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Don't even get me started on 9s and 6s.
posted by fshgrl at 1:27 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
For all its worth, I never had any problem with left and right or east and west for most of my life. Then I moved from Seattle to Orlando and suddenly my internal east-west filter got completely busted. As near as I can tell, I always associated east with "towards the mountains (Cascades)" and west with "towards the water (Puget Sound, Pacific Ocean)". Here in Florida there are no mountains and there is a big body of water equidistant from me both to the east and west. I've been here seven years now and although I never have any problem with north and south, I *still* have trouble with east and west. I have just accepted that my brain is broken on that particular binary choice and I will always have to consciously think it through to arrive at the correct answer.
Good luck to you, you are not alone.
posted by Lokheed at 1:27 PM on December 9, 2010
Good luck to you, you are not alone.
posted by Lokheed at 1:27 PM on December 9, 2010
Random related anecdote... when my daughter was three years old, she would make "legs" out of the first two fingers of each hand and have them "chase" each other around the table, desk, bed or even her own body. After seeing The Incredibles she began pretending her hands were Violet and Dash (characters from the movie).
Watching this for several weeks, my wife and I realized that the left hand was always Violet and the right hand was always Dash. We used that to teach her left and right. We got her to associate VioLET and LEFT, and she has never had a problem with left and right. On a few occasions we have helped jog her memory by saying something like "It's on your left... LEFT. VioLET. Which side is Violet on?"
Anyway... it's not likely to help you out in this case, but I thought it was worth mentioning because sometimes things just "click" like that.
posted by ElDiabloConQueso at 1:29 PM on December 9, 2010
Watching this for several weeks, my wife and I realized that the left hand was always Violet and the right hand was always Dash. We used that to teach her left and right. We got her to associate VioLET and LEFT, and she has never had a problem with left and right. On a few occasions we have helped jog her memory by saying something like "It's on your left... LEFT. VioLET. Which side is Violet on?"
Anyway... it's not likely to help you out in this case, but I thought it was worth mentioning because sometimes things just "click" like that.
posted by ElDiabloConQueso at 1:29 PM on December 9, 2010
It took me a long time to learn, and it is still not ingrained; I often have to think about it. One of my Computer Science profs said he had the same trouble. As a kid, in order to figure out how to set the table, I taught myself to shrug my left shoulder when I thought Left. I still do it occasionally.
posted by theora55 at 1:29 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by theora55 at 1:29 PM on December 9, 2010
I know it intellectually but not intuitively; when giving directions to someone driving, if I'm looking at where we're going instead of the words on a Google Maps printout, I say the wrong one ("turn right... I MEAN LEFT TURN LEFT, AAARGH!") about 25% percent of the time.
Some people just have this problem. I also get lost in buildings, and can't tell you which room in a house is the one above me even when I've lived in said house for years. When I get messed up, I face a known object, put my arms out on either a north or east=right orientation, using my left hand to make an "L" and my right to sign "R," and talk myself through the remainder of the problem. The resulting twirls greatly amuse family, friends, and coworkers, and contribute to my whimsical reputation.
posted by SMPA at 1:50 PM on December 9, 2010
Some people just have this problem. I also get lost in buildings, and can't tell you which room in a house is the one above me even when I've lived in said house for years. When I get messed up, I face a known object, put my arms out on either a north or east=right orientation, using my left hand to make an "L" and my right to sign "R," and talk myself through the remainder of the problem. The resulting twirls greatly amuse family, friends, and coworkers, and contribute to my whimsical reputation.
posted by SMPA at 1:50 PM on December 9, 2010
I think some people have innate left and right, and the rest of us have to try and learn them. Left and right are just not different to each other in the same way as front and back, and top and bottom are.
In cars for direction I do my side, your side. Assuming your in a car set up for the local market, the driver's side is always the more challenging turn regardless of whether it's left or right. This also helps when driving on the other side of the road.
If I'm at work, I have a pen hand (left) and a mouse hand (right). I can usually imagine these.
I've never got the L-left trick. If I need to look at my hands to know which is left and which is right, I can look at the callous from using a pen on my left hand, or the particular combination of moles on my right hand. What I'd really like to be able to do, is not have to look at anything, but just know which is which. I'm not sure that's possible for me, and I used to be ashamed of not being able to tell left from right. Now it doesn't bother me, and I'm better at it than I used to be.
posted by plonkee at 1:55 PM on December 9, 2010
In cars for direction I do my side, your side. Assuming your in a car set up for the local market, the driver's side is always the more challenging turn regardless of whether it's left or right. This also helps when driving on the other side of the road.
If I'm at work, I have a pen hand (left) and a mouse hand (right). I can usually imagine these.
I've never got the L-left trick. If I need to look at my hands to know which is left and which is right, I can look at the callous from using a pen on my left hand, or the particular combination of moles on my right hand. What I'd really like to be able to do, is not have to look at anything, but just know which is which. I'm not sure that's possible for me, and I used to be ashamed of not being able to tell left from right. Now it doesn't bother me, and I'm better at it than I used to be.
posted by plonkee at 1:55 PM on December 9, 2010
Left and right do not enter into the location of the gas cap on a car. Cars don't have left and right sides any more than boats do; they have driver's and passenger's sides. The gas cap is either on the same side of the car as you are when you get out of it (the driver's side), or it is on the other side (the passenger's side).
posted by kindall at 1:59 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by kindall at 1:59 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
I still have to think about it. I've read that some people are N/S/E/W people and some people are left/right people. Sounds like you're just a cardinal direction person. I make the L with my left hand from time to time. I'm 33. (Know what I absolutely can't do at all? Clockwise and counterclockwise. EVEN WHEN I PICTURE A CLOCK AND TRACE WHICH WAY THE HAND GOES. Translating that to a circle that is NOT a clock I just can't do!)
Not only does your gas gauge almost certainly have the helpful little arrow, but I finally took my label-maker and made a big label that I stuck inside my car that says "GAS -->" so I'd remember. :) I found out about the super-secret helpful arrow when a friend of mine who sells cars said, "Why do you have that "GAS -->" sign? You know your fuel gauge has a little arrow that tells you which side, right?" I was like, "Um ... REALLY?????? SERIOUSLY?" Blew my mind too. :)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 2:07 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
Not only does your gas gauge almost certainly have the helpful little arrow, but I finally took my label-maker and made a big label that I stuck inside my car that says "GAS -->" so I'd remember. :) I found out about the super-secret helpful arrow when a friend of mine who sells cars said, "Why do you have that "GAS -->" sign? You know your fuel gauge has a little arrow that tells you which side, right?" I was like, "Um ... REALLY?????? SERIOUSLY?" Blew my mind too. :)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 2:07 PM on December 9, 2010 [1 favorite]
I named my hands Kelly and Jim. No idea why. My mother would tell me to turn to my "Kelly side" when I needed to go left. Or was it right? I forget. Anyway , whether Kelly was left or right, eventually I just substituted the correct directions for the names. But yeah, for me it was finger-people, with names. And I knew which hand was which name because I named them.
posted by caution live frogs at 2:39 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by caution live frogs at 2:39 PM on December 9, 2010
I am going to contradict doublehappy. I work in anatomy. I understand anatomical directions and relational terms (literally) inside and out. I recognize left and right structures quite easily. I have no problem comprehending chirality and visualizing it and rotating and flipping it in my mind.
But I have extreme difficulty in terms of left and right when it comes to expressing directional terms on the everyday level. I simply struggle with it.
So left/right as concepts and the associated ability to receive and express directions in those terms are much more complicated processes than just practicing and building a strong comprehension of the relational terms of the body, and it's perfectly possible to have an internalized sense of direction without the terms 'left' and 'right' being or feeling innate.
posted by Uniformitarianism Now! at 3:10 PM on December 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
But I have extreme difficulty in terms of left and right when it comes to expressing directional terms on the everyday level. I simply struggle with it.
So left/right as concepts and the associated ability to receive and express directions in those terms are much more complicated processes than just practicing and building a strong comprehension of the relational terms of the body, and it's perfectly possible to have an internalized sense of direction without the terms 'left' and 'right' being or feeling innate.
posted by Uniformitarianism Now! at 3:10 PM on December 9, 2010 [2 favorites]
I learned when I learned how to drive. In the US, the right turn is the easy one, the left turn is complicated (across opposing traffic). "Easy turn/hard turn" became my R/L frame of reference.
posted by philokalia at 3:11 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by philokalia at 3:11 PM on December 9, 2010
I never understood the "make an L" thing; how do you remember if your hand is supposed to be palm up or palm down?
In cars I seem to differentiate between left and right by thinking of left turns as "difficult" (crossing traffic) and right turns as "easy." Of course this means that I am hopeless at right and left when navigating in countries where you drive on the left side of the road. (On preview, what philokalia said.)
posted by yarrow at 3:13 PM on December 9, 2010
In cars I seem to differentiate between left and right by thinking of left turns as "difficult" (crossing traffic) and right turns as "easy." Of course this means that I am hopeless at right and left when navigating in countries where you drive on the left side of the road. (On preview, what philokalia said.)
posted by yarrow at 3:13 PM on December 9, 2010
Don't necessarily use left or right to define where things are. For example, for the gas tank on the car, use driver-side or passenger-side. You always know which sides they are when you're driving a car.
posted by ShooBoo at 3:21 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by ShooBoo at 3:21 PM on December 9, 2010
As a data point, I have no trouble determining left/right in my own head, either when following directions, or when visualizing structures as Uniformitarianism Now! says. However, I will frequently say the wrong direction when I am speaking to someone; this is not only embarrassing, but problematic when I'm supposed to navigate (which doesn't happen all that often) .
posted by purpletangerine at 3:36 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by purpletangerine at 3:36 PM on December 9, 2010
Am I the only one who thinks that learning mnemonics too young actually screws you up so that you have to go through them when you're adult enough that you shouldn't need them? I have to go through the whole alphabet to figure out if P or U comes first. I also have to think "Never eat shredded wheat" when the whole North east south west thing comes up. Mnemonics can become a clutch and then you're stuck with this horrible routine you have to do for the simplest thing. I don't think you need another mnemonic or "trick". Maybe just have someone you trust walk you around with a blindfold saying "go left" and "go right" in a park or something until it's reinforced enough that it's just second nature and you don't have to look at your L-shaped hands (or whatever else). This is actually what I did to teach my Chinese-speaking English students the directions in English.
posted by mingo_clambake at 3:37 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by mingo_clambake at 3:37 PM on December 9, 2010
I was lucky (?) enough to have a bad scar on my right hand. So I check my hands to determine right and left. The funny thing about that is I always know which hand is which, but the problem is coming up with the right vocabulary.
I also have no sense of direction. Some people just don't.
posted by leahwrenn at 4:26 PM on December 9, 2010
I also have no sense of direction. Some people just don't.
posted by leahwrenn at 4:26 PM on December 9, 2010
I struggled with this as a young child but learning piano helped a lot.
posted by Coaticass at 10:38 PM on December 9, 2010
posted by Coaticass at 10:38 PM on December 9, 2010
I didn't learn the L thing until I was in high school.
posted by elsietheeel at 5:54 AM on December 10, 2010
posted by elsietheeel at 5:54 AM on December 10, 2010
For what it's worth, my mom still has left/right confusion issues and she's 66. In contrast, I've never had a problem learning my left from my right- it was completely intuitive for me. I think it's more of an innate thing than people realize.
However, I do have strong memories of my dad teaching me the difference between saying "left" versus "your left" by asking me to tell him which was his left side. He must have screwed around with me for twenty minutes before explaining the difference between the two and how I should always make clear to the other person what I meant.
For my college friend who couldn't tell her left from her right to save her life, we used "turn toward the Katie side" or "turn to the Mouse side" when she was driving to make life easier for her :)
posted by Mouse Army at 7:18 AM on December 10, 2010
However, I do have strong memories of my dad teaching me the difference between saying "left" versus "your left" by asking me to tell him which was his left side. He must have screwed around with me for twenty minutes before explaining the difference between the two and how I should always make clear to the other person what I meant.
For my college friend who couldn't tell her left from her right to save her life, we used "turn toward the Katie side" or "turn to the Mouse side" when she was driving to make life easier for her :)
posted by Mouse Army at 7:18 AM on December 10, 2010
It cracks me up that my brilliant husband has such a hard time with this. I had no idea it was so common.
I'm not sure why it comes automatically to me. I think maybe being left-handed has made me more aware of directionality. Like for doublehappy, it feels like a natural extension of myself.
This is what I did for my little girl, who has known right from left pretty much since she could talk: every time I put a piece of clothing on her, I would narrate. "First, we'll put your LEFT leg in. Now, we'll put your RIGHT leg in." "This is your LEFT foot. This is your RIGHT foot!" I would also narrate directional and positional things. "We're turning LEFT." "I put your cup on the RIGHT." Maybe there's a window for this, but it couldn't hurt to practice narrating left/right in your head and see if it helps things come easier.
posted by moira at 9:50 AM on December 10, 2010
I'm not sure why it comes automatically to me. I think maybe being left-handed has made me more aware of directionality. Like for doublehappy, it feels like a natural extension of myself.
This is what I did for my little girl, who has known right from left pretty much since she could talk: every time I put a piece of clothing on her, I would narrate. "First, we'll put your LEFT leg in. Now, we'll put your RIGHT leg in." "This is your LEFT foot. This is your RIGHT foot!" I would also narrate directional and positional things. "We're turning LEFT." "I put your cup on the RIGHT." Maybe there's a window for this, but it couldn't hurt to practice narrating left/right in your head and see if it helps things come easier.
posted by moira at 9:50 AM on December 10, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 12:04 PM on December 9, 2010 [21 favorites]