Wearing masks everywhere indoors is so depressing

[Sossen]

AIBU to feel frustrated and, at times, a bit upset that I can’t really do anything indoors now, either on my own or with my kids, without wearing a god damn face mask? I’ve just about been able to tolerate wearing them whilst food shopping but that’s because I now take a lot of time to write out a list and meal plan beforehand and I get in and get out, as opposed to before, when I took the time to browse, picked out what I fancied, and maybe tried on some clothes whilst there. I can cope with this ok but what is depressing me is that my ds is desperate to go to a few indoor places like the trampoline park (our local one has strict guidelines in hygiene social distancing and staggering sessions) and I’ll take him but the thought of sitting there for an hour and a half opposite my dh trying to talk to him with a mask on or watching my ds play and he can’t hear me because of the mask, well it fills me with dread. I had a cinema pass which i’ve has for years but I’ve already cancelled It as there is no way I can sit for up to 3 hours with a mask on, it would be unbearable. Every day out we go on that is predominantly outdoors but have some indoor areas I’ll have to remember to take masks with me. If I nip to post a letter, pick up my medication, go into a public car park to get my car after work I have to wear a mask. I expect to be told I’m moaning but I can’t help it. I fully resent the fact that I am being told to cover my face and I have no choice in the matter. Please tell me I’m not the only one.

I dislike wearing them and will go out less because of needing them. The only public place that feels anywhere near ‘normal’ at the moment is eating in a restaurant.

I haven’t managed to find a mask that doesn’t steam up my glasses yet- and haven’t got endless money to try each design! - so for longer trips out I will end up putting in contact lenses but these irritate my eyes so not keen on that solution either.

I desperately hope this is a very temporary measure and people get trusted to use them if they feel unwell but are not compulsory. I can put up with it for a few months but not long term.

I find this pretend normal more unsettling than full lockdown, which I didn’t actually mind too much. Felt far safer at work and out and about than I do now. Masks make me feel less safe as they are a constant reminder the world has changed.

I really hope they don’t make it compulsory for school children as I couldn’t think of anything less conducive to learning than having a hot bit of fabric on the face all day.

It’s shit the whole situation is shit YANBU

Why moan about something that could save your life and the lives of others?
Do you think about NHS staff who have to wear masks for twelve hour shifts?
Grow up and realise nobody likes it!

I AM the staff who has too wear them for 12 hour shifts - usually in an air conditioned room. I give full permission to anybody who wants to moan about them! (other HCP's may disagree, I don't speak for us all, just me.)

Also very thin evidence that they will save your life or anyone else's - see my above posts.

People can moan about whatever they like

We will still be wearing them at Xmas, there will be people wearing glitter ones, and Santa Claus ones, like it is charming and fun. I will only wear a paper one, which I take off ASAP outside the supermarket, straight in a bin. I am not going near novelty print ones, ones with cute dogs on, or tasteful Liberty lawn print - people saying get cute ones etc make me want to head butt the wall. I will make an exception for this one -

I would not be remotely surprised now that huge swathes of the population are wearing masks a lot of the time that the potential detrimental impact of mask wearing (bacterial infections of the skin and airways, trips and falls from restricted vision, breathing difficulties) become more prevalent

In countries where mask wearing is commonplace, these “impacts” just aren’t a problem. They don’t happen, at least not in any statistically significant number for there to be any awareness of them.

Also, if a mask is so ineffective that it can’t keep the virus out, how is it also effective enough to not let air in/carbon dioxide out, to the point where is caused breathing difficulties? One or the other, surely.

Also the state of your first paragraph. Honestly fed up with these posters who think they can spew insults and look “hard” on the internet. Fucking ridiculous. Obviously not the place to come for mature debate.

Today 10:33 Sossen

Maybe not for you but for me and I expect a lot of other people it is. I have sensory issues when it comes to things touching my face, so much so I always have my hair up as I can’t stand it touching, I have to use sensitive cleaning products on my skin and then there’s the fact I feel that I can’t breathe properly and I’m going through peri menopause when I’m not quite 40 years old. So I’m sorry but everyone Is different.“

Yes indeed, which is why I started with that. That was my point really but I put it very badly. (Re-reading, not at all really 😁)

I’m not the least bothered by a mask. Lots of people aren’t and it’s so important that they do wear theirs to protect others, like you, who just can’t because it causes real distress. I am completely perplexed by those who refuse to wear one on principle, because though it causes them no harm whatsoever, they’re just bolshy buggers who won’t be told what to do. I’m these uncertain times, that’s just a ridiculous position.

If it causes people little discomfort, just wear one. It’s not a lot to ask of people to protect others, really is it 🤷‍♀️

Part of my job is to critique scientific studies

Hopefully a very tiny part, since you're clearly completely clueless.

Man, you were at the back of the queue on the day brain cells were being allocated, weren't you?

I'd rather be stupid than a bitch. And you appear to be both!

@fedupwiththeidots Sat 08-Aug-20 18:16:08

Part of my job is to critique scientific studies. Mostly in the pharmaceutical sphere, but essentially it's all statistics. To show a benefit to anything, the gold standard is a double blinded RCT, without any confounding factors. You can't blind a mask study very easily, but the best studies show no benefit, or in the case of cloth masks, quite the opposite.

That was the only conclusion I could come to after searching through the internet for information on mask wearing. Plenty of statements saying that the evidence is there, no-one actually referencing any evidence.

If 'May be beneficial if worn correctly' is conclusive evidence then we are truly snookered.

Yes it sucks, but we have to do it for the greater good. My nurse friend keeps saying ‘if you don’t like wearing a mask, then you REALLY won’t like being intubated. A little perspective

Oh god not the scaremongering intubated line! we really are reaching a full house on the Covid bingo card.

I would not be remotely surprised now that huge swathes of the population are wearing masks a lot of the time that the potential detrimental impact of mask wearing (bacterial infections of the skin and airways, trips and falls from restricted vision, breathing difficulties) become more prevalent.

But if skin infections,RTIs and breathing difficulties are linked to mask wearing there should be evidence for that ,from the countries where mask wearing is prevalent and from job settings where mask wearing is normal?
A properly fitting mask shouldn't restrict your vision.
Also I don't understand why wearing a clean mask over clean skin should increase your risk of skin infections.Wearing clothes doesn't give us skin infections.

If 'May be beneficial if worn correctly' is conclusive evidence then we are truly snookered

If there are many many more studies saying a variation of “masks are/may/might be effective” than studies saying “masks do feck all”, what might that suggest?

Isn't there something in the news today about "mask mouth", dentists in the US saying it dries out mucous membranes and may cause dental disease? not sure how verifiable that is, sounds anecdotal at present but you never know.

I've just googled "studies on the efficacy of face masks" and I have a page of studies,articles from medical and scientific journals and 2 scientific review studies.
They all look as if they are finding that masks reduce transmission ( though I haven't read all of the links yet!)

Ugh i cant stand mask nazis. I have ocd and cannot stand anything touching my mouth it makes me feel utterly sick. I will wear a mask out of courtesy in shops but it comes straight off once i step foot outside even in a shopping center and i need to visit multiple shops it needs to come off between each one. I hate them and i am sick of people whinging about other people who are not happy wearing them. Imagine back to a year ago if someone told you the government would force you to cover your face in public and you would get abuse if you didnt. Would you believe it?

Imagine back to a year ago if someone told you the government would force you to cover your face in public and you would get abuse if you didnt. Would you believe it?

I mean, if they told me that it would be because of a global pandemic and that the masks were to stop people dying, then yeah I'd believe it.

Pandemic or no pandemic you think its ok for people to get abuse for not wearing a mask despite you knowing nothing about that person or their issues?

@soasd

Imagine back to a year ago if someone told you the government would force you to cover your face in public and you would get abuse if you didnt. Would you believe it?

I mean, if they told me that it would be because of a global pandemic and that the masks were to stop people dying, then yeah I'd believe it.

I wouldn't have. Which doesn't mean it's the wrong thing to do, but actually I would never have predicted the huge degree of compliance - I would have said that people just wouldn't have accepted lockdown, masks, etc.

If you'd shown me footage of my local Tesco as it is today a year ago I would have assumed it was a scene from a disaster movie.

In fact its the cunts who go mad at people not wearing a mask who are making me want to chuck mine away full stop and refuse to wear it anywhere.

Pandemic or no pandemic you think its ok for people to get abuse for not wearing a mask despite you knowing nothing about that person or their issues?

That's not what I said.

Ugh i cant stand mask nazis

The shopping basket stasi had to find something to do when restrictions were lifted!

To these people who say ‘it is for the greater good.....’

You’d probably walk off a cliff if your incompetent Government told you to? Right.

Just look at the stats and ask yourself why we are being asked to do this.

OMG - infection rates are going up!!! Up from absolutely fuck all to absolutely fuck all plus an extra 14% of absolutely fuck all.

Wake up. You are being conned.