Masks. To wear or not to wear

[ripples101]

There are two premises:

1. Wearing a mask DOES help to reduce the spread of covid-19

2. Wearing a mask DOES NOT help to reduce the spread of covid-19

Obviously, only one of the statements above can be true.

First question: Which of the above statements do you agree with?

Next...

If you DO wear a mask, I think it's reasonable to assume that (for you), one or both of the following statements are true:

3. You do believe that wearing a mask does helps limit the spread

4. You do not have a physical or psychological reason that prevents
   you from doing so.

But if you DON'T wear a mask, then the reasons why could be any one (or any combination) of the following:

5. You have a physical or psychological reason that prevents you from doing so (but you still believe that wearing a mask does help reduce the spread)

6. You do have a physical or psychological reason that prevents you from doing so (but you don't believe that wearing a mask helps reduce the spread)

7. There is no point in wearing a mask because you believe that wearing a mask does not help to reduce the spread of Covid-19

8. You don't believe that you are at risk if you catch Covid-19

9. You won't be told what to do

10. You don't believe Covid-19 even exists

(11, 12, 13, etc. etc.) Insert any reason of your own here....

So the question to anyone/everyone.

Which number are you?

(You can choose more than one number!!!)

@MadameBlobby

There’s no number for “I wear a mask because it’s the rules but given numbers have done nothing but increase since we started wearing them I’m a bit cynical about the difference they make.”

Masks were mandated once lockdown eased, shops reopened, cafes and pubs came back.

It's people mixing that's driving the increase - masks are reducing the impact of the increased associations. Even with the half-arsed 'how can I get out of this small thing' that some people are doing.

I wear one only so already overworked shop staff dont have to ask me why I'm not wearing one.

I wear a mask , I don't think it does a lot

The trousers with pee thing is a stupid comparison as this is a airborne virus, I am not sure why people keep posting it.

I think masks may have a limited positive impact on rates of transmission. However, I only wear one because I have to. I started the day it became mandatory and will stop as soon as the requirement is lifted.

The trousers with pee thing is a stupid comparison as this is a airborne virus, I am not sure why people keep posting it.

Because it demonstrates to the hard of thinking how water droplets (which contain the virus) can be contained by wearing a mask. Non surgical masks don't protect the wearer, they protect others. So if everyone who can wear a mask does so it reduces the risk.

China have been pretty draconian about mask wearing and the rate of infection has slowed right down there.

@Againstmachine

I wear a mask , I don't think it does a lot

The trousers with pee thing is a stupid comparison as this is a airborne virus, I am not sure why people keep posting it.

But it doesn’t just float around it is in our droplets exhaled or coughed. So I think masks reduce this, maybe we get reduced viral load I think I’ve read that.

Our schools have masks. 80,000 students plus x number of staff and since august we’ve only had 380 cases. I think I where cases are rising people are getting complacent and have covid fatigue or just can’t be bothered and are gathering together not mindful of SD and mask wearing etc.. trying to get back to normal.

I'm not convinced it does help however despite having ptsd from rape involving suffocation I can now sprint around the supermarket wearing one. It's been a long painful road (I have physical scars from the desensentisation process) and I had a major panic attack in a supermarket a week ago when out of nowhere it became his hand and I lost all sense of where I was/what I was doing.

Basically sheer bloody mindedness, I'm sick of all the things I've avoided/feel a failure because of what happened to me and I couldn't cope with having to tell people why I was avoiding things/not wearing one. I still absolutely loathe the damn things and if I felt they were permanent, I'm not sure I could carry on.

Definitely think wearing a mask helps limit the spread, especially with those of us who are a little bit more spluttery!!

I wear a mask to avoid confrontation when out , i hate every minute of it , i wear one at work also .
I have little faith in its efficacy , clearly there are many variations in masks and how they are worn .
I dread to think what bacteria is brewing in some of them .

I wear one because it's required.

I suspect that a mask reduces transmission in lab conditions but that mask laws do not reduce transmission rates across a country as a whole. If you could enforce correct mask wearing almost all the time including at home maybe they would have an affect but that would probably be impossible not to mention cruel and disproportionate to the benefit.

Spain seems to have relied on masks as it's primary strategy for exiting lockdown and that appears to have been a mistake. The Asian countries very likely have a different less infectious strain of covid than Europe anyway so it's difficult to make a comparison.

Just from my own experience, masks do seem to make people feel safer which means they relax on some of the other rules or feel more able to go out etc.. My in laws started off very worried about covid but they will now go to places where masks are required - if masks weren't required they probably wouldn't go out at all. I'm not for a moment saying they shouldn't go out but obviously they are more at risk going shopping or to a cafe than they were staying at home. At the same time, they see friends and family at home without a mask and see this as "safe" because they know these people. Many of my friends seem to believe it's impossible to catch covid while wearing a mask or while with someone wearing a mask which does influence their behaviour even if they are still trying to comply with the rules.

I think masks are convenient for governments as they give the appearance that something is being done without having a huge economic impact.

Sweden's epidemiologist maintains that evidence for mask use by the public is extremely weak and I suspect that's correct.

It's very difficult to judge based on the relative success of various countries because there are so many other differences between them but I think it is clear enough to say that even fairly extreme mask mandates requiring mask wearing outside etc. don't have much effect.

The urine analogy only works if the people in it are male.

If I pee without pants on it’ll run down me leg. It’s not going to reach anyone else. It might fill my boots.

I was in tears when mask wearing was introduced as I didn’t know how I could possibly manage it. I wear the masks where it is mandated. I try to follow good mask hygiene. I cannot bear wearing them, I take them off as soon as I am able. I do not choose to spend any time in a mask compulsory environment unless it is totally unavoidable. I am not enjoying the amount of money they are costing me either, money is tight.

I wear a mask in the supermarkets only, and doubt their effectiveness. People also seem to think they're a replacement for social distancing. That's why the cases are rising.

@ChanklyBore
Get a reusable mask. They're cheaper and can be washed and worn again, so better for the environment. Before covid everyone was for saving the environment, now all I see is masks dumped on the ground.

They are finding out that the majority of infections occur in places with poor ventilation and where people are exhaling lots. It's all to do with viral load. Talking and singing expels more droplets. Viral load and dosage affects how severely people are affected. The chance of getting it from a surface is slim. It protects others more than yourself, but if everyone wears, everyone therefore benefits. Places where masks are worn routinely like Japan, Thailand, Taiwan have experienced lesser death rates. There are lots of studies to show this. dr John Campbell has discussed lots of them on his channel.

I cannot tolerate a fabric mask for intensely personal reasons. I have reusable for the rest of the family members.

I’m not going to single handedly wreck the planet. Perhaps I’ll balance out occasional disposable mask use with the fact that I haven’t used a disposable wipe, nappy, postpartum or period product for fifteen years that included three kids.

It's airborne, and hence masks are protective for you, the wearer.

Not only has the WHO updated their stance on the efficacy of wearing masks, experts say masks are one of the best ways to stop aerosols in their tracks.

"Masks stop the virus-laden aerosols exhaled by an infected person entering the indoor space and also protect others from inhaling it," Professor Morawska said.

www.abc.net.au/news/health/2020-07-11/the-who-says-airborne-spread-of-covid-19-possible-what-now/12443268

I'll go with what the scientific and medical experts say. Plus there are such brilliant masks out there. Good for ugly days too.
My only regret is my favourite is still sold out.

spaceaustralia.com.au/products/arse-face-mask

I wear one because it doesn't do any harm to, and if it makes other people feel more comfortable in my presence then all the better. Generally people wear them because it's a requirement- I'm on the fence about the efficacy but now I have cute and comfortable masks it's no skin off my nose to comply. My ds is asthmatic and exempt but wears one because he can't be arsed dealing with dirty looks or comments. He doesn't go out much as a result.

Just wear a fucking mask!

1 and 3.

Masks are hugely variable in fabric, type etc but study said an average 3 layer home made mask will stop momentum of aerosol leaving someone with mouth and firing directly into some knee else's.

Some knee 🤣🤣

I wear a mask because I'm told to but feel I have to be safe around covid residents I deal with. My life currently is wearing a mask everywhere I go

I grudgingly wear a mask because I have to. No idea whether it makes a difference. I can't fucking see properly half the time, though.

@ChanklyBore

I cannot tolerate a fabric mask for intensely personal reasons. I have reusable for the rest of the family members.

I’m not going to single handedly wreck the planet. Perhaps I’ll balance out occasional disposable mask use with the fact that I haven’t used a disposable wipe, nappy, postpartum or period product for fifteen years that included three kids.

I find that my disposable masks wash just fine.

in.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-japan-masks/japan-researchers-show-masks-do-block-coronavirus-but-not-perfectly-idINKBN2770DD
This article suggests wearing a mask both reduces your risk and reduces the risk of you passing the virus to others.