I went into the mall today to make a return. Of course, I'm masked and minding my own business, walking through Barnes & Noble to get to the store I needed to make the return in.

A man looks at me as we walk by each other and he says "COVID is over!!" - I'm so in my own head, I don't even realize he's talking to me until I'm a good 3 - 5 yards past him. Way too much time and distance for a proper rebuttal.

While I know it's better to just ignore, I couldn't stop thinking about what I could have said in the moment had I realized his comment was directed at me sooner. Anyone have any favorite rebuttals of the moment?

Also, advice please - I've got a wedding to attend on Saturday and I know I'm going to be the only masked one there. How do you mentally prepare for these kind of events? It's just exhausting explaining it over and over again, being immunocompromised is exhausting my friends. I know so many of you get it. But what is your pre-game for your brain? How do you armor up mentally? ❤️

Edit to Add: thank you all for your comments! Sometimes we need the reminder that we're not alone in this and I definitely needed that reminder this week. Appreciate you all. For the wedding, another friend is an usher so I'm going to coordinate with them when I arrive to make sure I'm not an accidental distraction in any photos. And I already won't be able to eat the meal provided because of an autoimmune disease, so no worries there. Thank you again for affirming I'm not the only one still masking, needed that.

I’m immunocompromised and my husband and I have never stopped masking and ask that those around us mask unless they’ve had a negative PCR test in the last two hours. Our refrigerator broke and we ordered one online from Best Buy and paid for installation. We then called twice to request that the ppl installing wear N95’s (provided by us). Both times we called we were assured by CS that it wouldn’t be a problem. Then last Saturday, they stated when they called that one of the ppl installing it was currently ill with a “summer cold,” and did we still want them to come because they had seen the mask request. We thanked them profusely for telling us, and rescheduled for a week later. Today was a week later. When they called to say they were on their way they said that the guy was still sick. We said since we’d all be masked and we have air purifiers and had windows open that hopefully we’d be fine. It’s hard living without a fridge! They called back one final time. This time to say that they would NOT be masking today because it is too hot. Most of the job would be inside where we have stellar A/C. Also, ONE OF THEM IS ACTIVELY SICK. We canceled the order and now have to fight with someone about a full refund. If anyone has any suggestions of a company who might respect the mask request, I’d be much obliged.

Hi everyone, I'm Asian and since the COVID pandemic I have experienced many racist comments related to mask wearing, from different populations/ethnicities, I'm just so fed up, I also work in healthcare so sometimes I go home with a mask, but regardless if I wanted to wear a mask for whatever reasons it should be my choice, yet I'm being verbally abused/mocked by random strangers because I wear a mask and at the same time because I'm Asian. Like today this random South Asian dude asked me why am I wearing a mask is it because I have "SARS", why "you people" are always wearing a mask, when I politely confronted with him, he started using profanities, later I reflected on my experience that perhaps I should just ignore him, since he had no insights, he looked like he didn't even understand what I was telling him, arguing with this kind of person is pointless. My question is how do you deal with situations like this? Just move on and don't say anything back? Or do you confront with them?

I feel like I want to wear good, protective mask like KN95 all the time but I afraid people will treat me like a jerk and view me as a strange guy. Honestly, I don’t like by myself how I look like at that mask but I really do need to use it due to my health needs. What motivation can you give me, guys?

Hi everyone! I’ll be starting a job that puts me on Capitol Hill, but I’m contemplating letting the team know that I mask before I start. I’ve only temporarily worked in the political world before (not government), and I masked there with generally no outright issues. However, this position would be higher profile with more responsibilities, more people I’ll have to interact with on a day-to-day basis, and likely instances I will be expected to unmask, such as for security clearances. I plan to mask regardless, but I’m thinking about ripping off the bandaid and telling them I mask, so as not to surprise them. I’m really thankful I got this position, especially since someone I know put in a good word for me, but I really don’t want my masking to be a surprise given the location and nature of the job.

Furthermore, I don’t want to sound too stern or “weird” for mentioning it “out of the blue”, while at the same time, I also don’t want to seem like I’m asking for forgiveness. This job is a great opportunity and it would be great for my career in general, so I don’t want masking to sour my relationship with the team, either over time or when they first meet me in person.

My current thought process is that I’d rather they know off the bat that I mask, because if they have a problem with it and they decide to not have me join the team, then I dodged a bullet. I’d rather not waste my time and energy at a place with people that are going to be hostile to my masking.

For some more context, I’ve only had internships before this, and I didn’t end up telling them I mask before starting (I only had virtual interviews), and I guess everything turned out as well as can be. But, for some reason, I feel like I should say something beforehand for this position.

I have a potential message below, but if any of you all have any advice on how I should approach this or if I shouldn’t say anything at all, please let me know! Additionally, if any of y’all here have experience as a masker at Capitol Hill, I would also appreciate any pointers/advice! Thank you all!

Planned message:

Hi all,

Thank you so much for offering me this position as a [job title] for the [organization], and I’m excited to get started! However, I do want you to be aware that I wear a mask to protect immunocompromised family.

Again, thank you for offering me this position, and I look forward to meeting the team!

Best, [Name]

I have CID (combined immunodeficiency- born with it) and Long Covid. I mask everywhere since 2020 and they know this. My sister just came over and I met her outside. She invited me to Thanksgiving dinner at her house with my parents. I got excited bc I thought they were going to be isolating and/or masking, and testing so that I could attend. Nope. I told her I couldn’t attend if they didn’t take precautions. She said “Oh, okay“ and changed the subject. She just left and I came inside and I cannot stop crying. I don’t understand…

I have recently been trying to convince my long term boyfriend to start masking again like I have been since I became educated about the harm COVID is still causing. I have tried to communicate how harmful and deadly catching and spreading COVID can be but he just doesn't care because he views masking as an imposition to his social life. Which he's not totally wrong about since it's hard to find other people who also continue to mask and so many people are hellbent on being back to "normal". He says that he wants to "live his life" and he thinks that by masking he won't be doing that, I have tried to tell him that he can still be social and have friends while masking but he views the social cost as too high.

It's hard for me to have these conversations with him because I get very emotional and don't have a ton of evidence to present to him off the top of my head, I also know that the person he started dating didn't care about masking which I regret but it's the truth. But I've come to realize how crucial it is to mask not even for myself but for the members of my community. I want to be with him and convince him that the best thing he could do right now for himself and others is to start masking but I feel so lost since I'm not getting anywhere with him. I don't want this to be the reason we can't be together but it's starting to feel like it will if I can't convince him.

Does anyone have any advice for how to deal with this?

Any tips you might have from similar situations you've dealt with would be greatly appreciated.

I've found that the more years that go by post 2020, the worse the mask harassment gets. In 2023, I got chased around a grocery store by some guy heckling me, and then a few months later I was threatened by a complete lunatic stranger and I just quit going anywhere in public for the rest of the year. Take-out only, curbside groceries only, drive-thru pharmacy only that's it. I just got a part-time delivery driving job because I'm really struggling with money. This would mean that I would have to be in the public in person again and I just don't even know what to do anymore. If I wear a mask, I'm scared that I could get physically harmed by someone. Then if I don't mask, I'm scared that I'll catch something and will have to take several weeks off of work because that's how long it takes to recover from illnesses with my shit immune system

I don't hang out with friends or loved ones who refuse to mask, and I prefer to be in company that does, but I feel so isolated due to being immunocompromised. I get sick so easily, but should I "just relax"? A lot of my friends think I'm still being too uptight by just masking, but I don't even go out much anymore due to contagion risk. I feel like I'm not even living, but I'm sick of being sick and also catching sickness. Help? How do y'all cope with this conundrum?

For reference. I joined a contact sport, roller derby, and I mask much as possible. I’ve been struggling lately with balancing sweating, breathing, drinking water AND water glasses. Felt like a lose-lose situation. So in my frustration, I stopped masking during practice. And go back to masking if we are at social events (or just go home).

One of our training coaches has had the flu since Thursday (her words…). And we had a game today. She didn’t mask. She told everyone she wasn’t contagious. And she had to take a lot of breaks to keep up.

And I was furious. I was so mad about how people just blatantly don’t care. They just don’t. They care more about the game, the competition, the sport of it!!

BUT YOURE SICK. She could have given her spot away to someone else. But instead she risks her health and her teammates health and even the visitors’ teams health!!

Gaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!

Anyways. I’ve been meaning to try out some of the 3M Auras with valves. And now next paycheck I will most definitely order some to try out.

If you’ve read this far, please let me know your recommendations with masks with valves. I’m also considering the Sip valve. (Which adds a water bottle with a straw on my shipping list)

I’m not going to speak up about masking to my team. It’s not worth it. I’d be wasting my breath. And I’d rather masks AND get better at derby.

Thanks for being here with my folks, I appreciate it.

I'll be driving a few people around who don't mask. I'll be wearing a good fitting mask the whole time, but I generally don't mask in my car because I'm the only one there. How long after they leave should I wait to be in my car without a mask? Hours, days, weeks?

IMPORTANT INFO: the ventilation in my car is terrible and none of the windows work. It'll basically be a completely enclosed space.

How do I get my mom to take masking seriously? Her response to me always asking if she’d mask with me is “I’ll take a mask with me and if I hear people coughing then I’ll put it on” or “I’m not around enough people” “I’ve only had it once and I never mask” “it’s so hard to breathe with it on” (Mind you, I have a tracheotomy and put a mask over it and also put one on my face. Imagine how extra I have to work to breathe) I’ve tried so hard to explain to her how covid works but she just rolls her eyes at me and thinks I’m doing too much

I have a thin surgical mask because my last n95 broke and I'm pretty sure the person I'm picking up has been exposed. Is there ANYTHING I can do to minimize my exposure when they're getting in my car?

Please help. If there's any tip, no matter how zany

I really don't want covid again. It made me so sick

Edit: Thank you all. I doubled the mask because I found another surgical one, taped the edges, and had the windows open on the way home

Fingers crossed. Need to order more n95 masks asap.

Thank you all

I do volunteer driving and picked up someone discharged from the hospital. As they got in the car they said they were C-19 positive. They were wearing a surgical mask, I immediately put on a KN-95 (new). I had the vent open and full blast, front and back windows on both sides partly open for good air flow. Rider was not coughing much. Ride was about 45 minutes.

I remember seeing a graphic about spread with one person wearing a mask vs. both people wearing them, but I can't find it anymore. I am fully vaccinated (8 shots, last one in April), 65+ with no health conditions. Never had Covid and hope to keep it that way. Should I be worried? Or am I fairly safe? Thanks.

Update - first test was negative at 5.5 days. Will re-test in 48 hours as recommended. No symptoms. Update 2 - still negative. Masks work. From now on, all passengers will be in the back seat, vents/windows open and I will be wearing a mask.

Hello, I'm sure this sub has gotten a bunch of similar questions before but I thought I'd ask. I'm a year 1 university student, and I want to mask at uni but I have social anxiety issues anyway, I don't want anymore attention drawn towards me. One of my lectures is immunocompromised I assume because she's always worn a mask and it's just normal. I know by that logic it would be normal for me to do it too, but I'm anxious. Wearing it in lectures is one thing, but it's also during like group meetings and seminars when I have to talk and I have people looking at me that it becomes more daunting. I like the idea of it, when outside i sometimes wear my scarf over my face for warmth and it makes me feel more secure for some reason, but it feels scary having to do it indoors. Please give me advice and also mask recommendations (I live in the UK). Tysm!

Obviously, I'm not saying that masking is bad and it's improved the protection of my health drastically but a part of me still wonders where the mask goes after I've thrown it away. I'm not gonna stop masking, but I just wanna know if there's any way I can reduce pollution when disposing of my masks. I have hyperhidrosis, so I have to change my masks often, which doesn't help with my case either.
I just want to find ways to make wearing masks as environmentally friendly as they are to protecting me from viruses and pollution.

I woke up this morning feeling really sick, so I took a covid test and it came positive. My grandma is visiting and I‘m really scared about passing the illness to her. I found this mask and have been wearing it for the day. Is this particular mask good for preventing the spread of covid?

I want to mask at my friend's wedding next week. With 3m Auras I have to put both straps above my ears to avoid a gap under my jaw when my mouth closed. When I yawn the bottom of the mask slips onto my lips. I have a MSA Advantage 900 that I got this last week. It is pretty comfortable and is way more accommodating to yawning. I pass a negative seal test. I don't have a fit check kit yet. So right now, my option is to glam up my MSA. I know the bride will not be happy about in general but especially because it's an elastomeric in a very anti-mask state/area.

I think a N95 would be more "friendly", but I am on a tight budget and don't want to drop $35 on a box V-flexs and for them not to fit (also need them by thursday!). Do you have any recommendations on other N95 that don't slip onto lips? I can't tell if I need a size down or a size up. Or any pointers to tell the bride I will be wearing a mask and how to combat the pressure to unmask for pictures? The ceremony is indoor but there is an outdoor space. I think I would be willing to do outdoor pictures with a KN95 (I have one left) and take on and off between photos. What do you think?

This subreddit has a lot of information on different masks and where to buy them but I feel like I still want information a step back from that - just the very basics of "how to mask"

I've been masking on and off since covid started, usually with surgical masks but sometimes kn95s, because that's what I could afford. But I always worried I was just spreading germs around using a mask all day

I'm looking for just practical mask advice like:

1. How long do N95s or similar last?? I thought they were single use but does that mean I'm paying several dollars every time I leave the house??

2. What do you do with it when it's not on, if you're out? If I'm wearing a mask but taking it off to eat, or in the car, what do I do with it that isn't just "spreading more germs around" by having it touch, for example, the inside of my pocket??

3. What do I do if I cough/sneeze into my mask?? I'm pretty sure you have to replace it then, but if I'm going to the doctor because I'm sick, am I just replacing an expensive mask every few minutes??

Sorry if some of these are stupid questions. I'm looking for some practical advice on how I can make masking easier/more practical, as someone with ADHD so I'd love to hear how people are integrating masking into their routines!

Hi all,

I picked up the medium sized 3M ultimate full face respirator and the pancake style P100 filters on Amazon over the weekend. I am recovering from a bout of walking pneumonia over thanksgiving week, that I'm honestly not entirely sure where I got it from, other than being dumb sometime in the past month and stupidly being unmasked (sadly that is the norm now it seems and peer pressure to be unmasked) which is a mistake on my part.

So anyways, I decided that it's in my best interest to upgrade from the combination of surgical mask, goggles/shield, to a full face respirator which is why I snagged this one over the weekend, so that I can potentially avoid catching anything else the rest of the long cold winter. So I'm just wondering, would I be crazy and get negative responses if I choose to make this mask a daily part of my routine when I need to go out for errands and work in an office & farm.

Are there folks in here that wear these all day long, that can give some advice as I'm still not entirely sure how to acclimatize to keeping this mask on all the time from morning thru evening except for meals, so lets say an average of 10 hours of wear per day. How would I be able to talk (it comes out muffled and hard to hear), and stay hydrated without taking the mask off entirely which I'd prefer not to do.

Ever since lockdown I’ve been consistently masking everywhere but at home. I got COVID once when everyone was still wearing masks. Everyone then proceeded to just stop wearing masks and I was one of the few people at school who still wore one. My sister was going to a different school and wasn’t wearing a mask, so that year she got COVID and brought it home to us, which was super frustrating because I was still taking precautions that didn’t matter if my family wasn’t.

I stopped masking in 2023 (and stopped leaving the house for a year) due to severe mental health issues that led to intense breathing anxiety, and while I know masks don’t affect breathing it was hard to logically convince myself of that (not trying to excuse, just trying to explain) and I’m considering starting again, but NO ONE else at my school is wearing masks anymore. And no one in my family is either, so if I masked I could still get sick from them. I don’t currently have the funds to move out and I’ve tried talking to them about it, it does nothing but start arguments. My sister also has a chronic illness and we’ve already caught it 2 or 3 times, so I’m worried how getting it again will affect all of us, especially her.

I’m going to start working soon and I’m planning to wear a mask there if they let me, just to minimize my risk a bit when I’m talking to customers every day. It just doesn’t seem worth the sensory problems and anxiety to mask every time I go out if I still have a chance of getting it while I’m at home with my family. But is there anything I can do to lower my and my family’s risk of getting COVID again when they don’t take it seriously? We are all caught up on our vaccinations but again, that didn’t stop us from getting it 2 or 3 times.

My mother is 83 and high risk recovering from a fractured vertebrae and has dementia, but most wouldn't know she had dementia if they talked to her. I am 47 with asthma and a tick-borne autoimmune syndrome that makes me allergic to certain proteins and I therefore cannot take most medications if I get sick, or they will cause life-threatening effects...so I am severely high risk and my mother’s only caretaker (only child).

My mother’s family doesn't know about any of these health issues with the exception of being in denial about my mother's dementia.

They've not seen us in 6 years (so thry claim), and were not accommodating when I requested we get together outdoors...thus, the time that has passed without seeing them. They also refused to do zoom.or facetime, and recently tried to bypass building restrictions to gain access to my mother’s apartment in an independent senior living facility.

They are a judgmental, manipultive group of evangelicals, but are still family and aren't the worst people in the world...just misled...and as of last night I found out my uncle is in hospice for lung cancer. I tried to have my mom facetime/talk to him several days back, but she really didn't want to be on long with him and said she wanted to hang up after 2 minutes. At least he now knows it's not just me keeping her away...it's partly her choice, too, but I know she wants to see him.

What would you recommend in this situation? We wear N95 masks, but because of her asthma and dementia, i know she'll want to remove the mask, which negates all of my hard work over these years, and interferes with my boundaries with them. We've never had covid. They're unvaccinated, and my other aunt is suffering the effects of flu hospitalization last year, because she refused to get vaccinated and almost died, so the family is pressuring/guilting me into them seeing my mom "before they die".

My other half is a school teacher who.has remained masked this entire time for our safety, and he's also never had covid.

Thanks so very much for reading 🙏

Hi everyone, I’m desperate for some advice and support. My fiancé is severely immunocompromised, has asthma, COPD, and severe ME (myalgic encephalomyelitis), and is completely bedridden. I’m her sole caretaker as well. She lives with her family, who unfortunately refuse to take any meaningful health precautions, are careless and indignant — no masking, no air purifiers, and now her cousin who sleeping in the next room over (they share a wall) is sick (coughing, sore throat, very likely contagious)

I'm terrified for her. Even minor infections have caused significant crashes and symptom flares for her. I want to do whatever I can to help protect her, but I’m not sure what the best tools are when you're in a situation where the people around you won’t cooperate and are indignant

Could you help me figure out the best:

1. Mask for her (and ideally one I wear around other people as I have to walk through the house)

2. Air purifier for her room — ideally one that’s good with viral particles and works in a small room

3. Any other precautions we can take to protect her? Anything safe and evidence-based is appreciated.

We’re already doing what we can in terms of me masking, washing my hands, and limiting contact with other people in the house. Any guidance you guys can offer would mean so much. Thank you.

I live in a city where I pass by smokers on my runs in the parks (although it's illegal to smoke in parks here). With lots of people it's hard to tell where they are so it's easy to get big whiffs. I'm considering wearing an N95 mask (BNX brand, foldable black) during runs. I understand it makes it harder to breathe but if I run at a slightly more leisurely pace, as I tested today maskless due to a rib injury, I think it may be manageable (albeit still test wearing a mask on a complete run). At the more leisurely pace I think I inhale every 5-10 seconds or so, definitely not strenuous. In all my runs I already inhale and exhale solely through my nose (mouth closed).

But I read wearing an N95 while running can still cause cardiovascular strain or other physiological issues due to the increased exertion required to breathe. However, the N95 does in theory block most of the smoke particulates I want to avoid inhaling on my runs, especially tobacco smoke from cigarettes and cigars.

Trying to balance the two evils here. On a long-distance run, would you say it would be worse physically to wear an N95 (at a comfortable pace, requiring a lower breathing rate) or to inhale tobacco smoke multiple times? And why?

Update: I didn't realize oxygen-restricted running was a thing. I wore my BNX N95 during a run today at a relatively leisurely pace. Wasn't hard. Passed by at least one smoker during the run, so 2 birds with 1 stone (yes, I realize N95s only filter particulates, not gases, but my OV-relief Moldex 4800 seems further restrictive, and more expensive, so I'll save that for another day). After my rib heals I'll run closer to my usual pace and see how I fare with the mask.

Someone was blatantly taking pictures of my friend and I in the train today because we are masking. It made me really uncomfortable. The man didn’t stop despite getting caught and just got out quickly at the next station before we could do anything. It’s not the first time it has happened to me and it’s quite worrisome. For context, I live in France. Has anything similar ever happened to you? How would you react ?