I took up the right handed acoustic guitar when I was twelve and played mainly folk through elementary and high school graduating to simple three chord songs rock on an cheap beginner electric.

My chording was never accurate and often misplayed.  So I lost interest.  After retirement I wondered, given I was actually left handed what would happen if I tried a left handed guitar.

Back to Square One

To my surprise my right hand knew no chords.  However, not surprisingly, like riding a bicycle, if I turned the guitar upside down I easily found the chord position and I  could change chords smoothly (albeit without strumming as the strings were upside down).

Searching the internet for some basic training I stumbled on the well known and acclaimed Justin guitar training website packed with useful videos.

Most interesting though was the fact Justin, a life long right handed performer and teacher had decided a couple of years ago to use his own beginners course to teach himself  left handed guitar.

It was a treat for me to see him having the same problems I had and in fact he needed to relearn his chording and changes from the beginning.  This validated what I was experiencing, yes, I needed to start over and train my hands.

Handedness Matters

While my journey playing guitar has really begun anew the good news is my chording and strumming and picking, once relearned, is far better than it ever was.

I am a left hander and although I was guided (forced) to play right handed for years my body and brain really did not want to.

I suspect I will never be a great player but for now anyway I am getting much more personal satisfaction from the experience.