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Everyone has given you great suggestions @MMMurray. To them i would add two things. When you are starting out, use the lightest gauge strings you can get which are typically ‘special lights’ for an acoustic. The second idea is one i used to try when i had not been playing for awhile and my callouses were gone. Tune your guitar down a half step or a whole step to reduce the string tension. Put a capo on the first or second fret to bring yourself back up to standard tuning. As your fingers develop the callouses you will not longer feel the pain and will not need to make any special adjustments. The main thing to remember is don’t quit because your fingers hurt! As you keep playing it will get much better.
