Research has shown that using the non-dominant hand will grow brain cells and also enhance creativity. I’m glad to hear this, because I’m going to be testing this very soon.

I need surgery on my right shoulder, and my right hand is my dominant hand. I have been warned that I will not be able to use my right hand at all for two weeks and that my right arm will be in a sling for several weeks.

Since I got hurt over six months ago, I’ve been using my left arm as much as possible, simply because my right arm hurts so much. However, in recent months I have begun to practice using my left hand more intentionally to perform those daily tasks that, until now, I have always taken for granted: dressing myself, brushing my teeth, making food, pouring liquids, feeding give my cat his medicine, pick up my vitamins, take out kitty litter, take a bath, carry things, etc.

I still have to practice writing and eating with my left hand, but since my surgery is less than a week away, I’d better do it.

Research on the web and wise friends and family have given me great suggestions to help me get through this unfortunate but necessary right hand and right arm hiatus. For example, a water spout and an electric toothbrush make cleaning your teeth a lot easier.

I know that slip-on shoes and button-down shirts are a must, as is a recliner, since I won’t be able to sleep in a bed (or get in and out of a bed) for a month or two.

I love doing Sudoku and just found out that I can do it with my left hand on an iPad as I can type in the numbers with one of my fingers. Sudoku is one of the ways I relax and I’m so glad I don’t have to give it up.

Over the past six months, I have learned to make accommodations. I have primarily used my left arm to carry heavy things, although my adult children and friends have taken care of most of my heavy needs.

My son empties my car and carries groceries and three 40-pound bags of kitty litter to the house at a time. He has taken it upon himself to fill the six bird feeders, take out the trash, and mow the lawn.

My daughter pushes and fills the shopping cart and cuts me whole watermelons. I am very lucky that they both live relatively close to me.

Kind friends and colleagues have brought me my training materials and helped me set up the training rooms: moving tables and chairs, placing the kites on the walls, filling the candy bowls and placing them on the tables, arranging the table and materials for the participants, etc. I could never have managed to continue running training programs for the past half year without your wonderful support.

How did I hurt my shoulder? I carried four very heavy pieces of luggage through an airport on the way to Jordan and Dubai and apparently tore a tendon. I also have a torn rotator cuff and an impingement (essentially bone-on-bone scraping).

Over the course of traveling on different planes and having to climb steep stairs to board them, I further aggravated and inflamed my arm and shoulder. I quickly learned to ask the people around me to help me up the stairs or to put my luggage on top of my seat. I literally had no choice.

My surgeon wanted to schedule my surgery well in advance, but had training commitments to meet. Even now, I’m very (!) tempted to put off surgery even longer because I’m worried I won’t be able to do my job. However, there will never be a perfect time, so I’ll have to handle it now.

When I ask myself what I am supposed to learn from this situation, there are a number of answers that come to mind. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. It is often okay and sometimes mandatory to ask others for help. I am very lucky to have friends and family to help me get through this.

2. It will be a good neuroplasticity experiment to see if using my non-dominant hand will make me smarter and increase my creativity. Those would be wonderful and welcome side effects!

3. Acting like I’m strong as a bull has gotten me into this situation. When I travel for work in the future, I will pack and mail materials ahead of time and make sure to use a carrier for all luggage.

4. As much as I hate to admit this fact of life, I am older and need to be more realistic about my physical capabilities and more diligent in properly adapting to my physical limitations.

5. It will be a test of my self-discipline to resist the gravitational pull of my desk for two full weeks. Creating materials and items has been a daily habit for decades.

6. When I don’t listen to my body, it eventually does something so dramatic that I have to pay attention. I need to finally learn and remember this lesson.

7. I have always prided myself on my independence. Now I need to recognize and accept that there is no shame when I have to depend on others.

8. Knowing that I will be out for a while has pushed me to be better at setting boundaries and managing expectations, for myself and my clients.

9. If medical professionals do not take my pain seriously in the future, I will not hesitate to order an MRI! An early diagnosis would have saved me six months of agony.

10. There is a season for everything, and this is my time to rest and heal. I plan to come back smarter and stronger!