anyone else nervous walking up and down the stairs

[CrowdedHouseinQuarantine]

it was hard before, not touching the rails, but now, wearing a mask, it is even more disorientating.
i know someone who recently fell and broke his arm in the above scenario

I avoid touching my face when out and about. I do avoid touching surfaces unnecessarily.
But if I felt unsteady on the stairs then I would certainly hold onto the rail. I would rather wash my hands after touching it than risk falling on my face and breaking something!
And I’m ultra careful. I’m immunosuppressed and was shielding until recently.

Seriously, people have lost all common sense.
Just wash your hands and don't touch your face.

good idea re gloves
thanks

@CrowdedHouseinQuarantine

i have been since March, no virus here!

No virus here either, and I’ve been touching rails 🤷🏻‍♀️

and a tissue, marvellous!

no i am fine on the stairs, it is only the added mask wearing that hinders me.
i have good balance

I'm really confused why you aren't engaging with the idea that you could just sanitise your hands or wash them afterwards. There have been known cases where it is likely surface transmission was involved (but as it is airborne that can't be certain), so being cautious is advisable. But when a virus is killed easily be soap and water and you have access to methods to sanitise your reaction seems disproportionate to the risk.

Gloves are so wasteful! Just clean your hands!

OP can't you see that the risk of falling down the stairs is bigger than the possible risk of catching CV? Particularly when you take into consideration that for the overwhelming majority of people CV will be not that big a deal.

and plenty of people have been using paper towels to exit the ladies , so i might utilise that idea re stairs, but i can manage very well, except when wearing a mask.

waste?
you could say that about disposable masks?

Hand sanitizer
Hand sanitizer
Hand sanitizer

For the love of god use it !
You've ignored the MANY mentions of it but I'm assuming you get the message.

I have just witnessed this yesterday at WH Smith when shopping, an elderly man 70’s, walking down a large staircase not holding rails and he tripped. I was standing at the bottom of the stairs - he just managed to save himself but it was very dangerous and he could have had a nasty accident.

I think holding the rail and hand sanitising afterwards much safer.

hey, you could say using a tissue is a waste also,
if you wanted to be particular

People are just getting madder and madder.

I've touched rails, lift buttons, not washed shopping, taken public transport, am high risk and I'm still ok.

Honest to god, people have lost all ability to assess risk or use common sense.

Touch the bloody rails before you fall on someone else and seriously injure them.

poor man

waste?
you could say that about disposable masks?

Yes, I do say that about disposable masks.
Last years bandwagon about saving the environment has been swiftly forgotten in the face of Covid, it seems.

Just always have a little bottle of hand sanitiser with you. If it makes you feel better use it every time you go up or down stairs.

I didn't suggest wearing disposable masks or using tissue. Plastic gloves could I suppose be replaced by a pair of cotton ones you sterilise between stair case uses. But just wash / sanitise your hands!

@Drivingdownthe101

waste? you could say that about disposable masks?

Yes, I do say that about disposable masks.
Last years bandwagon about saving the environment has been swiftly forgotten in the face of Covid, it seems.

i know, i agree, all those abandoned masks, but these are needed where i work

i guess back in March you could not get hand sanitizer for love or money, and it is a habit i have continued with, very well.

OP for what it's worth I don't think you're over reacting. Luckily I don't go anywhere that involves touching rails but I wouldn't be comfortable with it either.

Can also say that in my immediate circle my DH, my parents, my aunt and at least one good friend wouldn't be happy to touch them either, so it's not as if I'm a lone nutter.

I think gloves would be a good idea or a tissue or wipe in your hand so you don't need to make actual contact.

Have you tried levitation?

No. Get a grip (in both senses)!

i am not sure if all here have been working throughout as I have, since one of the first comments was regarding being at home
the issue is the mask wearing distorting your vision.

@CrowdedHouseinQuarantine - why are you ignoring every single bit of sensible advise here that suggests you hold a hand rail & then immediately sanitise you’re hands?

This is the best advice anyone could give you. It’s not unreasonable or inflammatory of saying anything negative about you. It’s sensible & the best advice you could get. Hand sanitiser is readily available in any shop these days. I go shopping quite regularly & all the supermarkets have it stockpiled. You can also order it on Boots & Superdrug websites. I recently did as I wanted a specific one.

I’m not particularly anxious about the virus but even I follow this advice. I press the button to cross the road, I wash my hands. I use a self service checkout, I was my hands. I take my mask off, I was my hands. I open a local carpark door, I wash my hands. I help my kid on the playground, I wash my hands. Possibly overkill but actually, I’m hoping it also helps keep other germs at bay too once we go into winter!

thanks @Bol87