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AIBU?

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Original poster

To not understand why people have a problem with wearing a mask?

447 replies

Changednamesorry · 23/06/2020 19:46

Where I live masks are mandatory for everyone over the age of 6 in any public indoor space (shop, train station, doctor's surgery etc) and where it is not possible to guarantee the 2m distance. 100 euro fine for non compliance.

Of course some people break this rule but the vast majority wear masks including a lot of kids younger than 6. My mum and dad in the UK also wear masks when out atm.... But they also said its ay best a 40% uptake and that in the supermarket the staff don't wear them!!!

Here on MumsNet i see lots of people saying that they "won't wear a mask".... Why? It's to protect others so surely its a good thing to do even if they are a bit uncomfortable?
In Asian countries (China, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea) mask wearing is and always has been done to protect others.

Why?

OP posts:
ExpectTheWorst · 23/06/2020 20:24

Well bully for you if you don't find them that uncomfortable OP.
I also live somewhere where they are compulsory and I find them fucking awful for a number of reasons:

  • I absolutely hate having my nose/mouth covered (I won't even go under the duvet, for example, i already find that too limiting for breathing) so it's in - and -out of the shops as fast as I can and then off with it.
  • they massively limit communication, this really can't be stressed enough. It's difficult to hear what anyone is saying, especially if they are also behind one of those shield things (compulsory at tills etc), and so much communication is in expression, and it's all gone - there's no chat, there's no smiling, you can't tell if anyone is pissed off or not....it's made going out just horrible
  • nobody is using them properly - everyone whips them off immediately they're outside, nobody is washing them after every use, there's loads of touching the mask, touching face etc , it is a complete farce
  • as the weather gets warmer it's becoming more and more uncomfortable to wear one for more than a few minutes, sweaty and just nasty
  • hayfever/cold sufferers - you can't wipe your nose! it's a fucking nightmare!
  • fogs up glasses awfully, and even if you don#t wear glasses, I've found that I'm more clumsy wearing a mask due to some stupid periphery vision problem that I didn't even realise was a thing
  • my young dc can't understand what I'm saying (again, so much communication is more than just words) so keeping control of him when we're out and about is even more challenging

So lots and lots of reasons really.

PickAChew · 23/06/2020 20:24

I have a constantly blocked nose and the heat from a mask makes me feel like my face is going to explode. No matter how I adjust it, my glasses steam up, meaning that I can't see. I'll wear one in tight spaces for short period of time and that is it.

Original poster
Changednamesorry · 23/06/2020 20:25

@AllWashedOut that is the kind of attitude I don't understand though? What do you mean "muzzled"? It's a small face covering not an instrument of torture!

OP posts:
PinkSparklyPussyCat · 23/06/2020 20:26

I do think there's a risk they can make people complacent. I only go to our local corner shop and don't wear a mask. It's well laid out with 2m floor markings and has a one way system to help with social distancing. The only problem I've had there was with a stupid woman wearing a mask and gloves who seemed to think because of that she could ignore the 2m rule and get in everyone's way.

LevoMental · 23/06/2020 20:26

I wear one at work purely because my colleagues are more comfortable with it and we can't social distance. They also wear gloves which I don't bother with. I take care to wash my hands often and practise good hygeine if I need to cough or sneeze.

Outside work, I go out at quiet times where social distancing isnt difficult. The people who "forget" and get too close by leaning across you in shops tend to be those wearing masks.

I hate wearing one, I can't breathe properly, I get too hot, my skin breaks out, I get headaches. All of that means I am inclined to fuck about adjusting it, pulling it down to get a breatb of air etc. I try hard not to but subconsciously I probably touch the mask several times a day.

I don't see the point in them as long as distancing is possible.

Original poster
Changednamesorry · 23/06/2020 20:26

@Belowwreck a very good point!

OP posts:
PinkSparklyPussyCat · 23/06/2020 20:27

It's a small face covering not an instrument of torture!

You might think that but clearly many others disagree.

Needcoffeecoffeecoffee · 23/06/2020 20:28

But there is no guidance to wear masks (outside of the hospital and care environment when it should be medical grade ppe)
The public have been told to wear face coverings (presumably because of shortages or threat of shortages). Telling us to make some put of an old t shirt does not sound scientific or like it would do any good.
Most people who I see with masks are walking around between shops/public transport with them tucked under their chin!
They will then put them back on, retouching their face several times, then touch things in the shops I may want to buy.
And half the people think that if they wear a mask they can stand over you or reach round you
We half a half arsed system that's the problem

LakieLady · 23/06/2020 20:29

I prefer to keep my distance.

I have multiple allergies. My nose manages to be both blocked and streaming simultaneously and I find even covering my face with a light cotton scarf makes it get damp very quickly.

If they become compulsory, I'll have to wear one, but I'd really rather not.

AuntieMarys · 23/06/2020 20:30

I don't use public transport.

Montsti · 23/06/2020 20:30

YANBU - it’s mandatory to wear one in public here in South Africa and has been for weeks. You are not allowed into a shop without one. We exercise with them etc...children have to wear them at school.

My 5 year old wears a mask to walk the dog and go on her bike (as do my older children). My 2 year old does not..

Look they’re far from ideal but some are better than others. We’re doing it to protect the most vulnerable in our society.

As far as I see, there are no exemptions. If you won’t wear one then you have to stay at home..

elephantsbreath2 · 23/06/2020 20:30

Well if they don't find a mask comfortable then they certainly won't find a ventilator comfortable Confused

BankofNook · 23/06/2020 20:31

Last time I checked, a deaf person not wearing a mask wont hear any better.

No, they won't but I don't wear a mask near my mum as she's deaf in one ear and replies on lip reading to make up what she misses in spoken words. I imagine there will be other friends/family members of deaf people who do the same.

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 23/06/2020 20:32

Well if they don't find a mask comfortable then they certainly won't find a ventilator comfortable

Oh that old chestnut. If you're going to have a dig can't you come up with something original?

elephantsbreath2 · 23/06/2020 20:34

@PinkSparklyPussyCat it may be an"old chestnut" but it's true!!Hmm

Rockhopper81 · 23/06/2020 20:36

I don't wear one because I have sensory issues that are exacerbated by covering my face (amongst a whole host of other things). I keep to social distancing rules and appropriate hand washing.

The number of people I have seen wearing masks incorrectly, or repeatedly adjusting them, or lowering and raising them - it's worse than not wearing one at all. And these are the people - in my experience - most likely to flaunt social distancing guidelines.

If people want to - and can - wear them, great! But at least do it properly. And lay off the guilt trip on those who don't/can't for whatever reason.

BankofNook · 23/06/2020 20:36

Well if they don't find a mask comfortable then they certainly won't find a ventilator comfortable

Ventilated patients tend to be sedated so the comfort issue is entirely moot.

SunflowerProsecco · 23/06/2020 20:37

I don't see there is much point for me. I am not allowed to wear one at work (government guidelines) despite being in an enclosed space with 15 others for many hours, no physical distancing, often performing intimate care.
If I am not allowed to be protected at work, why are the government giving advice to wear masks on transport and in shops etc. It makes no sense for me to wear a mask in these places but not at work.

bloodywhitecat · 23/06/2020 20:37

I'm asthmatic, I wore one yesterday for a hospital appointment but carrying a 8 week old in a sling while pushing a 7 month old in a buggy combined with asthma and hayfever made me feel very breathless and panicky.

vodkaredbullgirl · 23/06/2020 20:38

People on ventilators dont know they are, as they are sedated.

Rockhopper81 · 23/06/2020 20:38

The ventilator comparison isn't true by any stretch - not least because ventilation (as a genera rule) is a sedated procedure. Many things happen under sedation and anaesthesia that people couldn't cope with when awake and alert.

oblada · 23/06/2020 20:40

"elephantsbreath2

Well if they don't find a mask comfortable then they certainly won't find a ventilator comfortable"

Face masks in the community mostly protects others from ourselves not the other way round in the main so not a very valid argument.
And the scientific guidance is not clear on the benefits of masks as it leads to flouting other rules and thus ultimately more risks overall in some cases.
Far from straightforward.

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 23/06/2020 20:40

it may be an"old chestnut" but it's true!!

No, it's another ridiculous comment that's done the rounds on social media. As another poster said, anyone who is unfortunate enough to be ventilated tends to be sedated.

NoHardSell · 23/06/2020 20:42

@elephantsbreath2

Well if they don't find a mask comfortable then they certainly won't find a ventilator comfortable Confused
What's that got to do with anything?

You are wearing your mask so you find a ventilator less stressful? Bizarre. I don't think it really helps for that!

LesbianMummies · 23/06/2020 20:43

@Belowwreck Wearing a mask won’t make a difference to the hearing of a deaf person no but it severely impacts those who lip read. My mum was born deaf, back in the days when children had their hands caned for using language. As a result she can’t hear, she doesn’t sign and relies completely on lip reading. She had to attend a hospital appointment recently, all the staff wearing masks, she wasn’t allowed to bring someone with her to interpret and as a result she has no bloody clue about her own medical condition. I’ve phoned for her to try and get some information and they won’t speak to me due to patient confidentiality. She now has to wait 6 weeks for a letter. That’s just unacceptable.