| "Don't use your thumb" is a bit misleading (sorry, wasn't meant to be a pun). What you should aim to do is "not hurt your partner". The thumb only gets a special mention because it is capable of a lot more damage, especially to the back of the lady's hand.
Your thumb moves in the opposite direction to your fingers. So you should only use your thumb when you need to apply pressure to the lady's hand and your fingers are facing the wrong way. Sometimes the thumb can be the easiest part of your hand to lead with, especially in some spins. I know I do this a lot, and I know at least one teacher in Australia who teaches it. However these moves are few and far between - most of the time you shouldn't need to use your thumb.
Don't be afraid to move your hand around your partner's hand. You don't always have to hold on to her fingers with your fingers. The palm of her hand, the sides of her hand,her wrist and her forearm are all perfectly ok to hold on to. But don't apply any pressure to the back of her hand. The tendons there are too exposed, and you can uasily cause tendonitis or worse.
One other thing to avoid - dont use your fingers and thumb at the same time.
David |