Eye Dominance Help

[805Bowhunter]

Hi all,
So my wife came to me about a month ago and decided she wants a bow. She's been on several elk hunts with me...always tagging along and loved it. I never wanted to push her shooting a bow because I wanted her to get into it because she wanted to do it. Well..now she's pumped. I ordered her a Mathews Avail through our local archery shop and, in practicing with the Nockon release trainer, I've learned that she's left eye dominant. She's definitely right handed (I am pretty dang sure shooting a left handed bow for her is out of the question). I've never really looked into this issue because I've been fortunate to never have any issues with it myself. Do any of you have any tricks or tips to working through this situation. Being that it is my wife and I want this to be as positive and enjoyable as possible (more hunting for the two of us in the future if it works out well), I really want to be careful in getting her into it.

She's very athletic and will be shooting a silverback, which she has already been practicing with through the trainer. I just need some help as I have never had this issue myself, nor has anyone who I know closely. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[jmez]

Two choices if she's going to shoot right handed. Close the left eye or retrain the eye dominance.

Retraining takes a while but isn't hard. She needs to start by squinting, not closing the L eye when shooting. Gradually, over time, squint less and less. Eventually the eyes will retrain. Nothing wrong with closing the left eye either. It isn't that much, if any handicap.

I'm left eye dominant and shoot R handed. I retrained my eye.

Odd thing is, when you retrain the eye it is only specific for that situation.

 

[JG358]

My wife is very right handed and very left eye dominant. She scotch taped her shooting glasses over the left eye and shoots right handed. Eventually, she got to the point that she could shoot both eyes open right handed with out the taped glasses.

 

[MattB]

My daughter is the same and I started her shooting left handed.

 

[Tod osier]

Hi all,
So my wife came to me about a month ago and decided she wants a bow. She's been on several elk hunts with me...always tagging along and loved it. I never wanted to push her shooting a bow because I wanted her to get into it because she wanted to do it. Well..now she's pumped. I ordered her a Mathews Avail through our local archery shop and, in practicing with the Nockon release trainer, I've learned that she's left eye dominant. She's definitely right handed (I am pretty dang sure shooting a left handed bow for her is out of the question). I've never really looked into this issue because I've been fortunate to never have any issues with it myself. Do any of you have any tricks or tips to working through this situation. Being that it is my wife and I want this to be as positive and enjoyable as possible (more hunting for the two of us in the future if it works out well), I really want to be careful in getting her into it.

She's very athletic and will be shooting a silverback, which she has already been practicing with through the trainer. I just need some help as I have never had this issue myself, nor has anyone who I know closely. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I retrained my eye dominance or can control my eye dominance (or something between the two of those options). I was left eye dominant and in my youth and shot righty and I changed how my eyes work. I can not close my left eye and leave my right eye open, so that is a compounding factor too. There are times when I wish that I had just decided to shoot lefty, but overall I'm fine. There are times when sights (my eyes with the sights) do weird things, but generally they are specific things I can avoid and don't show up in the field. I'm sure I've missed my share of game because of it (wingshooting mostly). I'd say if it is a known issue I'd just buy and shoot lefty.

 

[Pezboat]

I’m left handed with a dominant right eye. Started shooting a bow when I was probably 4 years old. Had zero idea that there was a proper form. I shot left handed, turned my head, and used my right eye. I was actually a really good shot that way too. Around the age of 18 I found out that was not correct. I slowly trained myself to shoot using my left eye. It took a while, but now, 16 years later, I don’t even notice it. It feels natural to use my left eye. I currently shoot with both eyes open. And jmez is correct. It’s oddly situation specific. I’m right eye dominant for everything else.

 

[Wrench]

I'm the same and agree with the above. You can't think your way through it without training your brain. Tape (opaque) on the dominant eye and it'll take a couple of months. ....but it'll come.

 

[Bmoore]

I didn’t grow up shooting much, but when I did I naturally shot a rifle lefty. So im pretty good with natural left handed shooting. However, in my teens I started getting interested in bows by shooting with my buddy who had a bow. It was a right handed bow, so I naturally learned to hold, draw, and shoot right handed. I only realized in adulthood as I got more and more into hunting that I shoot a gun lefty and a bow righty. Too late to change now. Moral of the story is that your body learns how to do what you want it to do. I’ve never even thought about the contradiction until I went to buy a bow and they tried to fit me for a left handed bow. They saw I was left eye dominant and assumed I’d shoot lefty. But I was already a fairly decent archer with my second hand right handed bow. So when I draw, my right eye just naturally takes over the aiming process. Weird but true!

As for short term tips, I’ve heard of people taking cheap sunglasses and popping the lens out of the eye you want to use and putting duck tape over the lens you don’t want to use. Never tried it, but it seems like a cheap and easy thing to try just to get the feel for usisng the non dominant eye for looking towards target. Might be worth a shot.

 

[805Bowhunter]

Thanks you all for the help. I actually put my horribly right handed wife into a left handed bow at our local shop, per recommendations above, and it was crazy...she was actually very comfortable! I am sure there will be some growing pains but I think it is going to be far and away better than her re-training her eyes. Thank you guys for your recommendations. Looking forward to shooting with the wife!

 

[roadrunner]

Better to stay with the dominant eye and build strength and technique to shoot that way. Better to focus on form only than to retrain and learn form at the same time.

 

[Michael54]

I got my wife one of those multi use neck buffs she wears it on her head and pulls it down over her left eye when she's ready to shoot

 

[wind gypsy]

Extremely uncoordinated with anything on my left side and very left eye dominant.. I just close my left eye and shoot right handed (albeit not that well..)

 

[roadrunner]

Extremely uncoordinated with anything on my left side and very left eye dominant.. I just close my left eye and shoot right handed (albeit not that well..)

I write, throw, and do most strong sided things right handed. I am left eye dominate and have always shot a bow better left handed and have always shot a rifle left handed (using a right handed rifle). When fishing, I cast and pitch left handed and always have as far as I can remember.

Talk about being messed up!!

 

[Jahvette20]

I’m rh/le and I just made the switch to a left handed bow after shooting a rh for 20 years. Took about a week to train my hands but my focus was immediately better. I would recommend starting her left hand since she’s just now learning. It should come naturally to her. There’s a whole thread on this from earlier this year

 

[Fisherhahn]

I just close my left eye while aiming. Never any problems

 

[jordan714]

I believe closing, or even just squinting, the left eye will allow the easiest way to shift focus on to the right eye.

 

[307]

Just shoot lefty. Shooting a bow is not a complex motor control situation... Don't fight what her brain does naturally.

Might be better to have the "dumb" hand controlling the release anyway

 

[Hoot]

I write, throw, and do most strong sided things right handed. I am left eye dominate and have always shot a bow better left handed and have always shot a rifle left handed (using a right handed rifle). When fishing, I cast and pitch left handed and always have as far as I can remember.

Talk about being messed up!!

i am right eye dominant and right handed, and do almost everything right handed, everything should be simple but I shoot pool left handed, in fishing I cast and pitch right handed, but I can’t reel with my left hand, so I switch the rod to my left hand and reel with my right, although I strip line with my left, yeah I’m messed up too...

 

[NrthFrk16]

I am left handed but nearly blind, even with glasses in my left eye. Spent a lot of time shooting with a left hand bow, using my right eye without a peep. Tried various aides as I assumed switching to right hand would be impossible. Within a couple hours with a right handed bow, was shooting tighter groups than I ever shot before. I would tell her to not be intimidated by switching hands, for me was a great decision.