Filters & masks to avoid devastating long covid

[Custardish]

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jan/26/covid-roulette-clean-air-ventilation-long-covid

I have (very) long covid and I am terrified of getting another covid infection and my health deteriorating even further.

I think filters and masks are a reasonable step to avoid getting more ill, and more people getting long covid. AIBU?

The virus may mutate to evade immunity, but it'll never be able to evade masks and ventilation.

I really don't want long covid, and I'm sorry that you're having such a hard time of it

I notice the fat cats at Davos take those sorts of precautions for themselves, whilst leaving everyone else in germ soup.

Those steps would also reduce the various other winter respiratory illness that are flying round at the moment. I don't want those either!

It won’t be popular to hear but having worn them professionally prior to covid I made sure that DH myself and both DC who were in 6th form and are now at Uni used them through the pandemic and still do now in necessary settings

DH was in hospital over new year for 3 days and the staff were quoting 50% of patients in the A &E department had covid

None of us have ever had covid (we test) and even after 3 days in the A&E war zone we still didn’t catch it. But we do wear FFP3 masks and not the paper ones which work for approximately 14 minutes

Yanbu. But I'm the weirdo who still wears masks in shops and busy places anyway. Hopefully the next round of updated jabs may work on the long term effects too. I've not had covid and would rather avoid it until they've established what all the long term side effects might be.

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If you want to wear them then you should absolutely go ahead

If it makes you feel more comfortable then do it.

Totally unreasonable to expect everyone to, though.

I had covid a few weeks back, it was a walk in the park compared to the flu type bug we all had the couple of weeks previously. DD and I stayed home so as not to risk infecting anyone else, and we distanced from other household members. We didn’t pass it on to any of the other four people living here and we weren’t obsessively wiping down surfaces or anything.

So for me personally, mask wearing isn’t necessary.

If you want to wear a mask then you should do so.

I don't get the issue

I won't be wearing a mask again. There were too many people with exemptions to make the rules effective.

What do you think about putting filters into schools and hospitals though? Germ soup indeed.

I’m happy to continue wearing a N95 mask. Wish more people would.

What that article is really saying is that no one knows who will be struck down with this long covid… there’s no crystal ball. One minute you’re living your life, and the next minute you aren’t! You’re just existing.

You have read the news that they are planning no more jabs for u50s in normal health?

What do you think about putting filters into schools and hospitals though?

A proper cost / benefit analysis should be done before that decision could be taken.

I wore a mask. I avoided busy places. I caught covid outside, as did my parents. (It has to be that place because it was the only day we were all together and we tested positive on the same day.) I still wear a mask. Hasn't helped my long Covid unfortunately.

YANBU. It’s not exactly a great hardship to wear a mask in crowded settings - I don’t understand people’s aversion to it, but each to their own. I’ll continue to wear them when I’m on trains, etc. I’ve also had (and thankfully mostly recovered from) long covid - perhaps that’s why I’m more cautious. Nobody thinks it’ll happen to them.

I hope your recovery speeds up, OP. It’s an absolute bastard 💐

Because it’s a pain in the arse and disgusting.

Nobody wants a dirty crumpled bit of paper over their mouth every time they step into a shop.

It’s a ball ache remembering them and frankly nobody wears them correctly anyway.

Theyre horrible for the environment and frankly what has life come to when we have to wear surgical masks just to be in public?

If you want to wear a mask, then wear a mask? I don’t but couldn’t care less if others do. Illness is inevitable part of life unfortunately

If you wish to wear a mask then wear one. You can't expect everyone else to do the same though.

I no longer wear masks except if required in a medical setting.

You are 100% correct- this is the only sensible approach to sending children (and their teachers) into a germ-warfare situation every new term time. This is not the 50’s - we are traveling all over the world and exposing ourselves and each other to 100’s more viral and bacterial infections than ever before.

All of the people voting this down are not just unreasonable, they are delusional! They are the same people sipping cocktails on the titanic.
What could possibly be wrong with clean air? No dust, no pollen, no mold spores or environmental pollutants, hmmm??

These people will tell you in the same breath they love their children, they would do anything for them… well how about dealing with reality and doing everything I your power to get air filtration in every classroom and public space that you have a statutory obligation or right to be in? If it’s good enough for parliament, Downing Street and other halls of power- it’s good enough for every single classroom and hospital ward to have the same.

HEPA for every classroom.

You don’t wear a HEPA filter- it’s an air purifier- High Efficiency Particulate Air filter. Everything under 0.3 microns is filtered out of room air mechanically, and blasted with UV light killing any viral particles and removing mold, pollen, dust and other environmental pollutants.

Doesn’t that sound like a good idea for an every class full of children returning this September?

How will children develop their adaptive immune systems if they aren't exposed to pathogens?

If you want to wear one then crack on OP.

I've had covid 4 times now but barely more than a cold. Certainly not worth the hassle of wearing a mask to avoid.

Filters and better air quality generally, sure. The general public masking, that ship has long since sailed. By all means get yourself a proper FFP3.

No, it sounds fucking horrible and weird

Air filters are actually a good thing as most of us live in a world with less than clean air due to pollution, fertilizers, chemicals and toxins etc. But to install them based on one single virus is ridiculous.

I’m sorry you have post viral fatigue syndrome though, it really sucks.

Viruses are part of life and as much as they are a hassle and affect everybody differently without bacteria there would be no life on earth.

They will be exposed to pathogens at home, in soil and in food like a normal pre-pandemic pre-globalisation child generally in life as they always have done- but repeated exposure to Covid will collapse their immune systems. This is not strengthening them for the future it is taking decades off their life expectancy.

In August a study published on BMJ / science direct and Medscape, showed reappeat Covid causes acquired Immune deficiency syndrome- and it’s airborne. Airborne AIDS.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2319417023000872

It sounds horrible and weird if you prefer to breath mold spores, dust, pollen, viral particles, environmental pollutants!