I have been told that I should be playing on a 3.5 reed, but when I try to go from a 3 to a 3.5 its hard to play. How should I know when to change reeds? Or should I just stick with the 3.5? Will it get easier as i keep practicing with the 3.5?

I play a 3.5 and a 4 sometimes. Buy a 5 pack of each and alternate each time you change a reed. It also depends what you are playing. If you are in a jazz band or a marching band then use the 3 if you play in a concert band use the 3.5, it all has to do with the dynamic levels. If you are asking who gave me this idea... nobody, i did it and it helped. If you have to say anything to me then send me a comment on my page cuz i usually respond to that better than by the forum... LOL

<3 Kassandra

I've been meaning to switch up for a while now, but keep forgetting that I need to buy harder ones when I get a new pack. thanks for reminding me
And also harder reeds always feel difficult at first. a lot of the time you just need to get used to it, or at least that's been my personal experience.