When would you feel comfortable for things to go back to normal (masks, etc.)

[Suprima]

Made the mistake of wandering onto Facebook and saw someone who is not CEV (I know them well) swearily bemoaning people not wearing masks at an open air garden centre.

My own views are kind of pick and mix re: mask wearing (and happy to be challenged on this)- anything open-air, nope. Spacious but well ventilated area- nope. Busy tube platform or carriage- yes. I am double vaccinated and testing regularly as part of work though, which might make me more lax.

I am aware that some people are wearing them all of the time, at every public event no matter if it’s open air or not. If this is your stance- what environment would make you feel like you could ‘go back to normal’ regarding events and mask wearing?

Not a goady thread at all. I’m curious and wondering if I should be more vigilant.

I only wear a mask in medical settings now.

Next spring, I think once we get through this winter we will have a better idea of where we are, any new mutations or will it start to become more like a cold.

I haven't worn a mask outside of a medical setting since they became no longer legally required. I have a one year old and put his learning of speech and expression first. Other than that, things are back to normal in England arent they?

I’d wear a mask at the doctors/hospital but that’s it, I’m double vaxed, so is everyone else and folks are getting boosters now.

I’m over wearing a mask, and seemingly so is everyone else round here.

Things seem pretty much back to normal anyway - mask wearing is definitely the minority where I am, even on crowded buses etc. I don’t wear one unless I’m a medical setting.

I just wear one when l remember
Am already comfortable with going out as usual but as a pp said, l think let's get through winter before we get too complacent.

Where I am it is pretty much back to normal and has been for a while

People wear masks if they want to but nowhere near the majority now. I don't see or hear any comments, I think that for anyone who is going out to work/shop/pub/for meals etc masks have become a non event

Still pretty common in shops here, I'm sticking with it as an overdue pregnant now and to be honest will probably carry on with mask in shops over the winter, it doesn't bother me wearing one after all this time now. And medical places obviously but other than that I'm mostly in outdoors or family settings anyway. But I agree you can't get tutty with people not wearing them where they're not mandated any more. I don't use public transport so not up on the rules there but if I did I would be wearing a mask there too, again as they don't bother me a d might be of benefit.

The honest answer is that I have no exit plan. And I'm quite prepared to keep doing it for now.

DD(19) is CEV. She also caught Covid last year despite shielding because she got it via DH who's a teacher or DS. She's been bedbound since. So I'm protecting her by wearing a mask and limiting indoor activities for the foreseeable, which is even more necessary now that everyone seems to think the risk has completely vanished. In the whole scheme of things, it seems a small thing to do and I can't lament not going to the cinema when my DD is stuck in bed!

Meanwhile my DSis, who also had it last year, recovered and is double jabbed, did her own risk assessment and wanted to get back to normal believing she would be fine. So she caught it again and didn't recover this time. She has now developed the same heart condition as DD and has had to hand her notice in at work. But she was happy to take the risk. I'm not.

So as I said, I'm happy to do me and let everyone else do them. Just as long as they stop asking me how long I'm prepared to do it as if I'm doing something wrong.

Figures here in Ireland are going up, and given that it's only October, I think it's probably better to stick with masks and distancing for now and reassess in spring. It's not as if it's that big a deal to wear one.

There are still high numbers of cases and RSV is also circulating. People don’t give a shit about others so whilst it would be sensible to carry on wearing them in higher risk spaces, I am not seeing that happening.

Where I live, I'd say the majority don't wear masks unless obligatory in a medical setting, so although I used to always wear one when indicated, I often don't now because I think, what's the point? Recently I've been in rural Norfolk, and Dorset: Norfolk, nearly everyone did (and I did too); Dorset, hardly anyone did (and I didn't either)!

I don't personally worry about being infected: double vaxxed and boosted, strong natural immune system, and have never been infected AFAIK despite many opportunities. But with very high rates of infections in schools, I wonder if they should reintroduce compulsory masks there.

So, on the whole I would be comfortable with no restrictions atm, but as scientists keep warning about winter and NHS, I'd take more notice of them.

I will continue to wear a mask when I leave the house until further notice. I will only remove it when I’m eating or drinking in a restaurant.

I’m conflicted. I hated it when we were shooting the evil eye at each other if a mask wasn’t sitting quite right, but I am not comfortable with the approach of pretending it doesn’t exist when deaths are still high. In London people are still wearing them on the tube and on the train quite a lot still are, it doesn’t feel particularly dangerous.

I’ll still wear a mask indoors where I’m in close contact with lots of people until our death numbers are down, maybe spring.

I was happy 2 weeks after my second vaccination.

I test regularly for work and before seeing people who I know are vulnerable-I figure unknown vulnerable people who are out and about have done their own risk assessment and are happy to be out in ‘normal’ situations.
I wear a mask on the tube as it’s compulsory (not that many people seem to follow this) but would probably wear one anyway on a crowded one.

I wear a mask in a hospital. That's it. I still distance myself from others but that's by default as I did it before covid

When I get over the death of my dear friend who covid took will I start thinking about no mask, covid took a healthy 35year old man so I'm not taking any risks myself and I steer very clear of non mask wearers

Big supermarkets no. The small cramped charity shop where Doris is volunteering? Yes.

I wore mine in shops for a bit after it became 'recommended' but generally don't bother now. I usually go by the general consensus of the place I'm in. If the shop asks for mask with a sign on the door, I'll wear one. I was shocked when visiting London how few people on the tube were despite it being required. I guess they knew there was no penalty. I was a bit more fastidious with the hand sanitizer in London than I am in my rural home.
Work is totally back to normal with no masks etc and I couldn't be more pleased.

Friend was telling me how vulnerable her boyfriend (older male) is, his medical condition, how he has to be so careful about covid, she had to be vaccinated early to help protect him, etc.... turns out he had it. About a year before they started dating! He felt Rough but not near being hospitalised.

I've heard variations on this a few times -- "so afraid of covid" and turns out they had it already & were ok with it.

I'm tired of being told how paranoid, worried, vigilant we SHOULD be. I'm tired of the constant enjoinder to be anxious and being told (in every area of life, actually) that we are inherently inadequate. It's like the new Puritanism. "Pathogen Age Puritanism?"

The Zero Covid Lot have moved to advocating that social distancing measures (masking indoors as default, 2m, frequent sanitising, plexiglass barriers, lots of asymptomatic testing, vaccine passports, ppl encouraged to only socialise with their fellow vaccinated, etc) should remain forever to keep a lid on all respiratory viruses. They actually think this is fair, sane AND sustainable.

"Normal" ? Bring it On.

100% right now. It should be a choice ans not judged whether you choose to wear one or not.

Scotland here and we still have to wear them pretty much everywhere

In London so have been wearing them on the tube as still required here. Got the bus on Saturday and only realised when I got off I wasn't wearing one and technically was supposed to. It's hard to keep sticking to it now we're all out if the habit

Please keep in mind that we're a long way from normal. I'm at hospital with a loved one everyday at the moment, and the respiratory wards are still beyond capacity. It's not just covid, there are far more people with pneumonia than usual too (anecdotal, but from a respiratory consultant). Things are a long way from normal.

And by at hospital, I mean stood outside in the cold. Visiting is still prohibited.

Honestly I don’t know. I just hope that we can get through the winter without it being too bad.

I’m not even really talking about covid. My worry is that we are going to struggle for medical treatment for non covid things. This is something that I’m genuinely scared about.

I hope it doesn’t happen but we have the highest number of recorded cases in the world at the moment. I think hospitalisations will inevitably increase as the chain of infection spreads from children to their families.

I want to get back to normal as soon as possible but I don’t know if pretending covid has gone is the way to go about it. I guess we will have to wait and see.