Why the hatred of masks?

[Ohchristmastreelove]

I don’t actually mind wearing one - I’ve bought several nice cotton ones from Etsy that wash and dry really well. Particularly in cold weather I would often go out with a scarf over my lower face anyway. I’ve kind of realised how grim strangers’ breath all over me in shops etc. is so I actually do feel more protected from ‘germs’ more generally wearing a mask in public.

Ok, wearing a mask when I had my hair done the other month was a bit annoying. And I wouldn’t like to have to wear one in my friend’s house when I go round (when it is allowed again! Not right now!)

But wearing a mask doesn’t make me annoyed or make me feel unwell. I honestly wouldn’t mind too much if they remained advisory for public transport etc.

I know this is an unpopular opinion!

Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of restrictions I am really hating and struggling with but masks is not really one of them.

Im not anti mask and will always wear one but i do hate them at the same time. I am quite hypersensitive to touch and avoid all sorts of clothes that itch me or are tight fitting and I also hate the feel of make up and lotions and things. So I do find masks quite challenging and very happy I don't have to wear it all day.

My glasses steam up (yes I've tried everything, don't patronise with 'advice' please).

They're highly antisocial.

I don't even have hearing issues but I struggle to understand people wearing them.

They are difficult to breathe through (asthmatic).

They hold moisture/breath near your skin and cause acne.

The great uneducated think they are some kind of magic solution, so they don't bother social distancing, or washing their hands anymore, because their magic masks are all they need to use.

They are just utterly vile. Why on earth some people are so bloody in love with them is beyond me.

I hate them because working with the elderly in community nursing they are just a huge barrier to effective communication. Something the NHS pushed for in its core values 🤷‍♀️

Is this question a joke?

Oh, gee, let's see... Why would anyone have an issue with existing in an essentially faceless world? With not being able to smile at people, or be smiled at. With having to guess what people - potential friends and lovers - look like behind their masks... Have you truly "met" someone if they were wearing a mask? With not being able to see the beauty and individuality of human faces. With not being able to hear people's voices properly ( many non-native English speakers are now virtually impossible to understand).

Facial expressions and seeing the faces of others are fundamental to human interaction and communication - to human existence. This masked existence is like a form of sensory deprivation.

And masks are a load of bullshit. As recently as the beginning of this year, the WHO and other health orgs were reporting that face masks among the general public have little to no effect in preventing the transmission of respiratory viruses.

Just one of many examples:

No recommendation can be made at this time for mask use in the community by asymptomatic persons, including those at high risk for complications, to prevent exposure to influenza viruses. (www.cdc.gov/flu/professionals/infectioncontrol/maskguidance.htm)

This has been the medical and scientific consensus for decades. Then came the highly suspicious volte-face this summer, when Covid-19 was at its nadir, accompanied by the public brainwashing campaign re "protecting" other people - as if the unmasked suddenly acquired the status of escaped serial killers!

It has had a huge impact on human life, for negligible, if any, health benefit.

I do not and will not wear masks.

@MissEllaWater

I'm exempt and while I understand the need for masks, I hate, loathe and detest the whole thing. Almost every time I go out I get abuse, shouted at, even threatened. I've been told I'm filthy, selfish, have disease-breath, am a super spreader, a disgusting tramp, a dirty cunt. I cannot wait for them not to be a thing anymore. I'm scared to go anywhere.

Incidentally today I was served in a shop by a lady wearing a visor. It was soaked with the condensation from her breath, which was dripping from underneath it. The paper bag she gave me had big wet splodges on it where her visor had dripped. I threw it straight in the bin and sanitised my hands while mourning my lost vegan sausage roll. Visors don't work - I can't wear one anyway, but I've lost count of the times I've been told I should.

Really? In months, only a handful of people have said anything to me, and all have done so in a professional capacity. A few shop security guards, health professionals, etc., have asked about my not wearing a mask. But the vast majority of people don't say anything.

I'm partially deaf and can't lipread mask wearers however I still wear a mask. I just explain how I need them to talk louder.

@McSilkson yes, really, unfortunately. Just today two women in a supermarket tutted as they walked past me and a man on the bus told the driver he should have a word with me. The disease breath comment was on the bus at the weekend.

Security guards, bus drivers, shop staff etc have been universally lovely. I've not been challenged once (I do wear a lanyard though). It's the general public who seem to have a problem. I understand that people are scared but being abusive helps nobody.

Incidentally, I've seen posters on MN tell some pretty awful tales of what they've endured - one lady was filmed walking around a shopping centre by a random bloke, who then filmed another maskless person. To share on social media, perhaps? There have also been some pretty nasty comments from the mask police, too - one poster likes to follow those without masks around shops and cough on them, and we're often called selfish and told we should stay at home.

I don't really mind wearing them either. Definitely doesn't put me off browsing the shops or having my hair coloured and cut (2-3hrs wearing one).

However, I appreciate I'm lucky to not have to wear it to work. I have to take my glasses off as they steam up (except for certain masks with a sturdy wire to keep it close to my nose) and that would be v difficult if I had to wear it at work.

It's a bit of a continuum isn't it - there are people who really like them or don't mind them at all, and people who find them deeply claustrophobic and distressing.

A lot of the people advocating masks seem to be at the first end, and think that it's an easy, low-cost intervention. They can't imagine there are people who don't feel that way.

And when people say, hey, this is oppressive and unpleasant and there doesn't seem to be any evidence that it helps, the first group reply look, it's such a small thing, what's all the fuss? But it's a small thing to some people, a huge and horrible thing to others, and you can't change that.

That’s a good way of putting it HalfPastThree, and I would add that for some people there are situations where they feel ok with the mask and others where the mask is unbearable or makes things much more difficult, and we will all have different scenarios for that. I have had no problems for example on my own in shops, but I found it very hard when taking my baby for vaccinations with toddler in tow

Does anyone have any recommendations of really comfy ones. Seasalter aren't bad. The Sainsbury ones feel as though I am suffocating.

@RosesAndHellebores if you're in Facebook, look for the UK mask makers group. They're all over the UK, some making for charity, some to sell, but you'll see a wide range of styles mostly in soft cotton and allowing for additional filters.

You might find a 3d mask - designed to stand away from your face - the most comfortable. Or a pleated one with a filter and a nose pleat - a paper filter can help the material stand away from your mouth.

Or dig out a needle and thread and look on YouTube - there's a ton of resources now.

But yes, the stretchy supermarket style are the worst for sweatiness..

My biggest issue is the downwards peripheral vision, that stops you tripping over feral kids (mine) and rough ground... Particularly fun when stroppy toddler needs carrying on the school run and 5 yo decides to run right in front of you...

Thank you Dame Fanny