Originally Posted by: gplayer33This was very helpful. I will quit this because it makes me feel like I am starting all over again. Thanks.

I think that most players out there go through similar issues right around the point that you're currently at....It's all part of the learning curve. About 2yrs into my own playing, I started taking lessons and I completely changed the way that I picked...more for mechanical reasons, than asthetics.
I remember reading something like one of those Mel Bay beginner books and it talked about exclusively using wrist motion for alternate picking/strumming/etc....then I got hit with a double whammy of realization moments when I started taking lessons & when I went to a Vinnie Moore clinic. Both Vinnie and my teacher incorporated picking motions that used a great deal of forearm motion, as opposed to just wrist motion. That really opened things up for me, because it fit what felt much more natural to me.

Likewise, if using the thumb/index/middle finger combo "feels" more natural and intuitive to you, I would go with it and take it as far as you can before trying to completely re-vamp your approach. I don't know what kind of music you're into or wanting to play....but if your goals are even semi-shreddy...see if you can dig up some video footage of Steve Morse and watch his picking motion. He may not be the out and out fastest player in the history of the world, but he picks plenty fast and not many players out there can rival his lines for picking complexity...so it can work just fine for you.

Like I said though, if you quickly find yourself hitting a wall with your mechanics, and all the intense practice in the world doesn't seem to be helping...then you might want to find a teacher or some one that can take a look at you technique and help you find out what's bogging you down.
Otherwise, embrace your differences and use them to make your own playing unique.
Best of luck to ya.

Don