to wash my hands every time I've been out?

[itsallsohard]

Since the pandemic, I have taken to washing my hands as soon as I come in the house from outside. Obviously perhaps if I've been on public buses, or gardening; but also if I've just been out in my own car, or to the grocery store. None of us in the family is especially prone to illness or to worrying, and before the pandemic (unless someone in the family was actually sick) we all just washed hands after using the toilet and before cooking or eating.

Is it really disgusting that I didn't do this before 2020? Or is it a bit OCD that I do it now? I genuinely can't decide. YABU = that's too much hand-washing. YANBU = sounds normal, we do too
(edited to try to get rid of some rogue strike-outs of whole lines...)

It's also how you build up immunity.

It's pretty pointless, really, but if it makes you feel better, why not?

Everyone is constantly touching their faces etc, any bugs/ germs you've picked up while out and about aren't going to be prevented a whole deal by washing your hands when you get in.

I do this, not even to prevent illness, more from seeing people scratching their crotch/ picking their noses, and holding onto the handles on public transport 🤮

Washing hands when I get home is a habit from lockdown and I've no intention of stopping it. It's a perfectly /sensible/reasonable thing to do.
It's something that's always been there in my inner psyche - I can remember having to show clean hands to dinner ladies at school. Covid has highlighted how important washing hands is and I'm going to continue doing it.

It is the easiest way to prevent the common cold and flu. Since Covid, I stepped it up to a ridiculous degree, but it is something I have done forever.

I'm a bit shocked to hear there are people who weren't raised to do this as children?? I'm sorry but it sounds like incredibly poor hygiene. I don't know anybody who doesn't wash hands first thing when coming home.

All the people talking about "building immunity" and how humans haven't evolved to wash and other shit like that: please remember that before modern medicine and sanitation about half of all children died in infancy.

It doesn’t do to get smug about how you never get ill. There are tons of factors that influence this, including genetic susceptibilities. For example, there’s a lot of research evidence showing that susceptibility to norovirus is genetic, and in particular linked to blood and tissue type. Some blood types rarely get it and if they do are rarely symptomatic (they may be shedding and spreading it, though!), and others are highly susceptible and pick it up much more often and are more badly affected.

So you might think that the reason you never get a sickness bug is because you do something superior to the people who do, but it’s more likely that it’s a genetic predisposition and you’re just lucky. Lots of other people aren’t, and they’re genetically more susceptible to picking up sickness bugs. My DD, for example, poor girl, is very prone to them, and good hand hygiene helps keep as many at bay as possible (if you are susceptible to noro as few as a handful of viral particles - nanosized! - can cause an infection!)

Same goes for other kinds of viruses and bacteria. Your “immune system” is genetically different to everyone else’s and it is constantly changing over time. Some people got very ill with Covid; others barely noticed it, were asymptomatic or never got it at all. The difference between these things was not just luck or how much or little handwashing they were doing, but down to lots of complex factors including individual genetics, viral load, exposure to other coronaviruses, and so on.

It's never occurred to me to do this. I just wash my hands after I've been to the loo. I very rarely get ill, perhaps because my immune system gets lots of practice.

I blame a horsey childhood where we'd happily eat our packed lunch after mucking out; and it didn't occur to anyone to wash their hands, and tbh I'm not sure they stable yard even had soap....

People who only wash hands after using the loo - are you fine with touching your face, mouth, eyes, nose, with your hands after being out, knowing that many people don't wash their hands after using the loo and have been touching all the screens, buttons, and so forth in the supermarket, lift buttons, and all the seat handles and railings in the trains, etc?

It's normal regardless of pandemic. Been doing it most of my 60 odd years

I always do this too

If anyone’s interested in how immune systems are affected by genetic factors, and particularly the case of norovirus, there’s an interesting article below. (The “I never wash my hands and I never get ill” people most likely have a combination of favourable genetic mutations that help them avoid getting ill as much as the rest of us, rather than some mysterious immune system power conferred by dirt! 😄)

www.bbc.com/future/article/20240307-why-some-people-are-immune-to-norovirus-and-can-a-vaccine-protect-the-rest-of-us

I still wash my hands regularly following the pandemic.

I still use anti-bacterial wipes on the shared desk at work.

I even still have a compulsion to wash my hands immediately after using a trolley/basket in the supermarket!

Before COVID, I was never like this. Only washed my hands after using the lavatory or before preparing/eating food.

I am a "after the bathroom, before prepping food" hand washer. It has never occurred to me in almost 50 years on this planet that I needed to concern myself with the fact that other people may have - gasp! - touched a surface that I have touched.

Fuck me, the more I read MN the more I'm amazed that the human race has made it this far. People are fucking deranged.

This! Exactly!

I do this too x

Having worked in the food industry most of my working life (nearly 40 years now) washing my hands a lot is second nature.
Always wash them when I get back from shopping knowing how lax some people are with personal hygiene.

My parents both came from rural areas in Ireland where they always did this in their family homes, and they made us do it too, before we did anything else. We would be allowed to hang up our coats, but that was it. We also had to wash hands before every meal.

It's not weird at all. I credit it with avoiding all sorts of nasty bugs.

You have apparently never watched a documentary about how long flu and cold viruses linger on handrails on public transport, then.

As an asthmatic, with severe exacerbations following cold or flu, I am possibly more aware than most.

But if you want a nice complexion going on through life then it is best to not introduce unnecessary pathogens to your face, via your hands.

This is not OCD.

OCD is a debilitating illness was that gives the sufferer obsessive and intrusive thoughts along with physical compulsions.

I think that is very normal after being outside

Some people’s hygiene is disgusting!!!!

And obv after using the loo, before prepping food, and after handling raw meat or eggs. My mum shrieks in horror when watching cooking programmes where the cook blithely touches every kitchen surface after touching raw meat or eggs.

People are fucking deranged.

I find it odd you would want to rub other people's faecal matter onto your face, and into your nose, mouth and eyes...

My complexion is fine, but I appreciate your concern. I understand your heightened sensitivity as an asthmatic, but for most people who don't live with chronic illnesses, the risks of contact with the general public are negligible.

Yes, because that's exactly what I said. 🙄😂