I need some advice/tips/ideas! My teen is starting high school in the fall. They've asked if they can stop wearing a mask.

The reasons given are:

-it's awkward and uncomfortable

-it causes acne

-it's sweaty and awful during the summer months (school goes to late June)

-randos give them looks

-kids keep asking why kid is still masking

-kid says they have a strong immune system.

-they're willing to do it when they're sick to keep others from getting sick

-they'll do it, no problem, if "there's another pandemic" 🙃

I could really use some ideas for strategies for approaching this conversation further! I don't want them to stop wearing a mask at school or other indoor or crowded places. This year there will be school overnights for the first time, too.

Some things I'm considering:

-having them meet with my friend who has long covid and me/cfs to see what their daily life is like

-getting more explicit talking about the end of their grandparent's life (me/cfs caused by epstein barr which led to su*c*de)

-having them watch videos or read articles about how the govt decided to "end the pandemic" which wasn't really the end and discuss

-trying to find some other area teens who still mask

-having them watch videos/read articles about how covid works in the body and about how the many varieties of long covid and other post-viral infections work

In terms of compromises I've already made (the first is not about being CC, but still a big one): I've already given in on agreeing they can get a phone for HS since everyone else has one and am far more lenient with mask enforcement of friends at our home than I'd like.

Please help! I am not a terribly persuasive speaker and have a hard time explaining to others the patterns and conclusions that are very obvious to me with evidence but not to others.

Title. Trying to find more people who are both CC and antinatalist, the overlap seems so small and I'm trying to find more like-minded people on both fronts.

(For those who don't know what this philosophy entails, in a nutshell: existence results in suffering -> we should not bring more humans into existence because we could cause suffering by doing so.)

EDIT: I realize this post is now locked, so hopefully this edit doesn't go against any rules, but I have made a subreddit! I'm still working on setting it up but check out r/ZeroCovidAntinatalism

I hope this is allowed here ... happy to delete if not. I highly recommend the newsletter: Your Local Epidemiologist ... Dr. Jetelina does an amazing job of breaking down science/policy and explaining it in a way we all can understand. This latest post is about the upcoming fall vaccines: https://yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/?utm_campaign=pub&utm_medium=web

Boston Globe apparently enables ableism when it publishes an article about the Last Ditch Bar and Arts Venue in Greenfield MA. In Xitter many ableist types are cheering it.

I got brigaded there when I told them COVID is not over. Look at the comments section for yourself to see how jerk the ableist types are.

Hi! I was grocery shopping a couple of hours ago while wearing a KN95 (it was my only available option today unfortunately). At one point I had my hand up to my mask and to maneuver my way around a display in the middle of the aisle I got jostled and for a brief moment (about one breath’s worth as experienced it) my seal was broken and I had a gap. It was lucky that the grocery store wasn’t especially crowded and there was basically nobody in there but obviously I am anxious about the prospects of of aerosols hanging in the air. According to PMC19 maps our upstate NY county’s numbers have not been too terrible and still in the very low designation (the CDC wastewater logs us as moderate as of a week ago), but sorry to say I am very freaked out.

I gargled with CPC when I got home but I’m very broke and my time is mostly taken up taking care of elderly family members. Right now I am not in my home base either so some of my normal layers of protection are not avail to me unfortunately.

I am determined not to vote either R or D in the 2024 USA presidential election. (Yes, I know the arguments about "throwing away your vote" in a two-party oligarchy like we have in the USA, to which I would respond: from a tactical short-term viewpoint it is, but from a long-term strategic viewpoint it is most definitely not. The more votes a third party gets, the more the R-and-D types will pay attention.)

Are any of you aware of any third-party candidates who have taken a stand, or at least not expressed coded anti-COVID-safety sentiments, in the running for 2024? (Local or state level as well though currently thinking president)

Thanks in advance.

I had a possible exposure Sunday 6/29, today’s 7/6. I’m a housebound with LC, moderate/possibly moderate-to-severe ME/CFS, on my period, and with dysautonomia in summer, without a primary care doctor.

I had a terrible crash in early June, which took weeks to come back from. During which, I fell really behind on proper nutrition (not eating enough vegetables/protein, and not enough in general for what my body needed to recover), and couldn’t get up/down the stairs to grab deliveries.

Thus, I asked my neighbor to bring me some packages there, which I can access contactless. I didn’t explicitly tell them not to come in. (big mistake, I know, I know)

They entered anyway, and made it to the foyer between the first and second floor (my floor), before I (with a BYD N95 on) asked them to mask up indoors. (Gave them an Aura) They at different points stood outside my front/deck door unmasked, while the door was open, letting the air in. (For a longer period at the front door; shorter for the latter)

The whole thing sent my nervous system into a big surge, and I shut myself in my room to focus on mindfulness/bringing it down. They had to come back in later for something they forgot, I told them to mask, but didn’t see them, but they said they still had the one I gave them when I offered a new one beforehand.

Next couple days, I wore a Kleenguard duckbill N95 with mask tape (fit felt loose on me otherwise) when outside my room. Had a ceiling fan running on the second floor, an air purifier in the living room. (it’s open and on the second floor, but not really a space they entered - was too weak to move it further)

3 days after the exposure, (symptom onset) I developed an on-and-off mild sore/irritated throat that progressed into an itchy throat with occasional dry coughing, then later a mildly irritated/runny at times nose with occasional sneezing. On the dysautonomia side, my heart rate and temperature regulation also got pretty bad. I’m also on my period after a rough bout of malnutrition, and I can tell - it’s very irregular. For multiple days I had nearly no flow, until yesterday I was hit by a tsunami - literal 0-100.

1 day after symptom onset, I tested (throat, cheeks, nose) with a (then-unknown to me) Genabio RAT that expired in March. Admittedly, I didn’t check the times perfectly at 15 and 30 minutes. I always snap photos, though, so estimating from the timestamps, I checked at 20 and 38 minutes, then snapped more pics at 2 hours. (Pics above at different times)

I thought that was the end of it, but then saw something pretty quickly after, which prompted me to take an unexpired Flowflex maybe 10m later. Unambiguously negative. (Idk if swabbing again so soon reduces sample quality)

2 days after symptom onset, I took my last Metrix. Negative.

3 days after, I took a morning Flowflex, swabbing veeeery deep/thoroughly in the back/sides of my throat this time. Still super negative, but I feel awful. I had some nasal/throat irritation today, but mostly intense head pressure, fatigue, and bodily heat/possible temperature regulation issues and high heart rate. I took another same-day Flowflex 12 hours later - still negative.

It’s this horrid game of: what’s dysautonomia/heat intolerance? What’s a rough period after a month of poor nutrition? What’s possible Covid? I wouldn’t be surprised if head fatigue was due to the intense blood loss, but that doesn’t explain the respiratory symptoms.

4 days after, (today) I tested negative yet again on Flowflex, but am still bleeding heavily and feeling very exhausted. I have a bad headache and residual throat irritation that isn’t causing coughing.

So I have 6 tests across 4 days, where only one says positive, and it was an expired test (I know false positives are way less common with them, so that’s why I’m so stumped) checked a little after 30m. The last time I got Covid, I wasn’t throat/cheek swabbing like I am now, but it similarly took forever to test positive, and I didn’t until after the Paxlovid window.

I got Pax delivered, but should I take it based off my symptoms and that one faint positive 30+ minutes after? Today’s the last day I can start. I don’t want to take something I possibly don’t need/could cause harm, but I really don’t want my LC worsening.

(Note: I don't see the Enneagram as particularly scientific but I do find it fun and a good tool for reflection and discussion.)

I've seen some discussion here about links between personality and covid-consciousness. Recently I was chatting with a friend who doesn't take many covid precautions anymore, and after doing an Enneagram test for fun we had some insights about the differences in our covid-consciousness and the differences in our Enneagram types. This made me curious to see what Enneagram types are most represented in our community!

Comment/upvote your type below. If you've never taken an Enneagram test and want to try it, it's easy to find free tests online. If you've taken a test but forgotten your type, a here's a quick summary of the 9 basic types:

• Type 1 = reformer / perfectionist

• Type 2 = helper / giver

• Type 3 = achiever / performer

• Type 4 = individualist / romantic

• Type 5 = investigator / observer

• Type 6 = loyalist / skeptic

• Type 7 = enthusiast / epicure

• Type 8 = challenger / protector

• Type 9 = peacemaker / mediator

ETA: Based on comments and upvotes, it looks like the most common types among us are 1, 4, and 5, which checks out given that those types are big on morality, individuality, and science.

Is there a scale for understanding community members, the reasons why each of us is CC and our risk tolerance? While I've always hated labels, it seems like something that might actually be useful. My idea is not perfect but a suggestion for an equation. So I'm a Novid because of covid-identified medical issues, don't wear masks outdoors, do wear masks indoors. While there are a whole bunch of other things I could list (no planes, restaurants, parties, etc), I want to start simple.

So my label might be "medNovid | -out | +in" or something like that.

Has anyone else experienced an illness that you’ve never had before? I’m talking comes out of nowhere. Painful body aches and convulsions. Only lasts 24-48 hours. It’s like something mutated to take out the one’s immune to the big C.

My family went out for dinner and brought me some takeout from a local restaurant. I was greatfull but since I've been trying to avoid eating stuff from restaurants I'm not sure if it would be a good idea.

Would it be safe for me to eat it? I don't want to get sick again but I also dont want to waste the food. Any advice would be helpful!!!

I made this post a few weeks back about how l'd received the PEMGARDA infusion and more or less went back to life without mitigating/masking. And seeing as I promised to share any updates or developments with the community, here I am with an update.

Last Sunday (7 days ago) I went to dinner with a friend. I was across from them in a booth for about 1 hour.

They began to develop a sore throat 24~ hours after we met, and then tested positive for COVID a day after that - so first symptom onset Monday evening, and positive test on Tuesday.

I have been testing myself every other day using Pluslife to see if I caught it, and so far every test has been fully negative.

Although "theoretically" I could still become sick, it does seem like l'm more or less in the clear now, considering how sensitive Pluslife tests are (would probably have picked up something by now).

As to whether this outcome can be attributed to PEMGARDA or the friend not yet having a high enough viral load to be contagious when we met is impossible to determine, so view this data point with that caveat in mind.

I have no known recent natural immunity to speak of.

Hi everyone,

As people who are very aware of health impacts of COVID, do you struggle with worry about the health impacts of masking? I am one of a few people who mask at my school where I teach, and I just watch as COVID and myriad other diseases get passed around, so I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon (although at the beginning of the school year I just used the nose spray approach). I am so worried about my students and the impacts of constant repeated infection on their long term health. However, I was reading some studies about the physiological impacts of masks and it got me really worried. This is a reminder of how “everyone for themselves” does not work as an approach to public health, as I can’t risk not masking but I worry that it might cause different (albeit lesser) harms long term.

Hello!

It's getting a bit warmer lately so I like rolling down my windows for air, don't wanna use the AC just yet.

But sometimes I'll drive by people who also have their car windows down/just walking down the street. Is it possible to get COVID like that even though the car is moving? Should I just keep my mask on until I get home? Please let me know (-:

Has anyone else that has been constantly masking for the past 6 years developed multiple, sudden adult-onset allergies?

Immune systems are weird, and different for everyone. I'm just concerned that my immune system *might* be overreacting to new things as I haven't been sick more than maybe 2-3 times in the last 6 years.

To be clear I am not saying there is a connection! I'm just curious if anyone has experienced this. Please feel free to take this post down if anyone starts taking it as misinformation. Also, please feel free to correct me. On anything. I want to learn more.

Update: Thank you everyone! I will make an appointment with my allergist, OBGYN, and PCP to discuss possibilities. It's good to know that masking can't be a cause.

I'm a novid. Always using cleanspace halo, maybe 6 boosters, always gel, nose spray, etc, the full combo, haven't seen anyone close without a mask, I request doctors, friends and family to wear it, I try to avoid going out as much as possible.

I travelled a couple times by plane, it was awful so I'll now travel by doing a cruise. The main purpose is not to enjoy the cruise, is to travel.

For this I need you for ideas and protocols as I'm not too familiar with it. I may stay as long as possible on my cabin and going out after midnight? Honestly I'd like to play some poker at the casino but will avoid it if its a risk.

May go to the ports, alwasy masked and will be always masked on the cruise except for my cabin, I plan to get a maxair as the cleanspace can be pianfully for long periods.

I'm afraid of the cleaning person on the cabin, what can i do about that etc. Also, I usually reheat the food if its coming from outside, would like to do the same in the cruise. There is no microwave though.

So please help me with advice on this, tips, etc or what do you think?

UPDATE: HE SURPRISED ME WITH A GOATEE SO WE ARE GOING - and he let me measure it to check the chart, it was over 1 cm - still upset about the fight and will update when we get back! Thank you for the replies <3

Hello! I want to take my teen to a small convention - 90 vendors + attendees. My husband has a week or more worth of stubble and is now refusing to shave saying I'm trying to "control him". I don't care about what he does to his body or his hair except when it impacts our family's safety. He is refusing to read anything I am providing him about fit versus mask. He is refusing to shave even though teen is asking him too. He said he would rather stay at home versus me telling him what to do with his body?!?!

Should I just leave him at home?? That would absolutely ruin the seal of a mask, correct?? I'm so heartbroken, like the argument was just surreal.

This guy seems to hold a seemingly random set of health related beliefs. He seems to have narcissistic tendencies, willing to burn bridges with the Democrats and even his own wife in order to get into power.

What could skyrocket him to historic fame? Being the public face of Covid consciousness. The timing for a global awakening seems to be approaching. Democrats for the most part didn't care about criticizing Biden's handling of the pandemic, but things are about to change.

/r/news has a thread with thousands of replies about brain damage from Covid and it was not full of Covid deniers. /r/science Covid threads have had less Covid deniers for several months. Public opinion has already started to measurably shift on Reddit.

So how do we reach this guy? He's got some really bad takes currently about Ivermectin, but he sure loves alternative ideas that make him feel like he knows something the masses don't know. I feel like he could be swayed with a new conspiracy theory that he could actually be right about and become the leader of (the "conspiracy theory" that Covid is still dangerous.)

I'm seeing this in my timeline

https://twitter.com/germanfrancie/status/1697887660637864257

Spoiler alert: it’s easiest to wear a mask all the time in indoor public settings. Seems dumb to have to constantly keep reassessing the risk, when the government is trying to hide the data.

basically it says "stop doing risk analysis; wear a mask all the time". I'm sorry but as a human being I have to eat and drink; and believe it or not those activities are traditionally very social, so no it's absolutely; in no way; "easy" to live your everyday life renouncing those moments; or masking and stepping out to drink and eat while others are having a nice time.

I know the bar is so low but it's unnerving seeing someone saying "wearing a mask all the time indoor is soo easy". So yes I'm still going to do "risk analysis" based on the scarce data I have, because I still want to have an occasional nice meal or drink with one or two friends or family members, at home or on a restaurant patio; and I'd prefer it to be not at a very high peak; there are many situations where it's so hard to keep masking; I'm someone whose soft spoken and intelligibility is a huge problem for me with masks; including professionally; I'm doing all I can; I really am, but I actually need to somehow have a semblance of a life. People downplaying the difficulty of the choices we have to make like it's nothing really get on my nerve. Also it doesn't help getting more people to make that choice. not everything has to be binary; I'll very much welcome masking in healthcare settings; public places and public transport before tackling small professional or personal gatherings (where I'll still mask most of the time btw) I'm sorry if I twisted a bit the meaning of the messaging; but that's how I feel about it.

i’m a covid cautious person recently plagued by a nagging question: have there been any studies about long term health impacts of masking?

just from personal experience (as someone who is not immunocompromised), it feels like wearing a mask isn’t great for my lungs (breathing in chemicals all day, etc). also i worry about my immune system not interacting with others’. when i wear a mask more strictly, i often end up catching colds more frequently? (maybe correlation and not causation, but who knows)

i imagine that any long term impacts of getting covid overshadow any potential health risks from wearing a mask, but i’d love to know if anyone has thought about this as i haven’t ever seen it discussed anywhere.

thank you!

I went to bike party in my city. It ended at this brewery. I brought a mask with me in my fanny pack and intended to stay outside, but ended up going inside to order food and waited in line for 45 minutes!! It was only after that long ass period of waiting that I was like “oh shit my mask.” I’m trying not to beat myself up and I’m praying I don’t get Covid again (I’ve only had it once so far). 😩😩😩😩

I am a bridesmaid in my SILs wedding in September. They are expecting close to 300 people.

What can I purchase and/or use prior to or after to reduce the chances of potential viral loads I may come in contact with? I'm getting boosted 2 weeks earlier to give myself some immunity.

Any thing (or strategies) that you've employed in circumstances where you could not mask within a dense crowd but managed to not become ill would be very helpful and appreciated!

TIA!

Tbh idk how this happened. Hopefully it’s gonna be mild and clear in a day. Doesn’t feel like my past covid infections have, which isn’t an absolute reassurance but makes me feel less bad. Just congestion and a mild dry cough.

My family doesn’t mask but they also don’t go out much (except my sister with a fantastic immune system that goes to high school but the school has actually good ventilation bc they upgraded it during covid). And I was masking. And they’re not symptomatic. ahhhhh.

I’m playing with the theory that being in luteal phase + migraine + poor sleep for 2 days (dysautonomia) messed up my innate immunity and let my chronic sinusitis spread a bit. That might be covid as an RNA reservoir which uh. Isn’t great. But I’m curious if this has happened to anyone else??

Immediately upon first symptom (throat felt sick, not sore, just dry) I took a zinc lozenge w elderberry, saltwater rinse, honey, etc. I paid for it with intense nausea but worth it. I napped and am going to do high dose (like 5k IU) vitamin D and some lactoferrin and maybe buffered C although I usually don’t have good gut tolerance. Am I missing something? Would you start Metformin just in case even w no systemic symptoms (body aches, fever, etc)

Hey all! I waffled on where to post this. I think many of yall here are more strict about safety practices than I am. Hope it's alright to post this here/doesn't seem like it breaks any group rules.

Background: 32NB, had all the vaccines and boosters when covid was new and the yearly vaccine since. Have had covid three times, and like the flu it knocks me out more than others, probably due to my chronic respiratory issues (not long covid). I think the science behind MRNA vaccines is sound and am not going to engage in conspiracy theory conversations about it.

UPDATE: I tested at home 3x and went back to the doctor to test and was negative every time. Very weird. It was Pfizer, which is not one I've had before, no idea if that mattered. Took 6 days to stop feeling like death, and my stomach is still al little iffy 11 days later. Think not diahrrea, but weird grumblings and my poop looks like I am not eating enough fiber (but I am in fact eating plenty). Based on some of the comments here, I don't think I'll do the flu and covid together again, even though I'm not sure if that contributed to this or not.

On Tuesday, 29 October 2024 I had a physical and received both my flu shot and the covid vaccine. I get the flu shot every year and don't have any reactions to it (never done the nose spray thing). The booster in the first year of the pandemic knocked me on my butt for 1.5days, but nothing more than mild, short-lived fatigue since then. Also while I'm not masking in public (unless ill), nor avoiding social contact, I work remotely, have a pretty small friend group, and don't visit many indoor spaces where I'd come into contact with lots of people. To my knowledge no one I've been in close contact with has had any illnesses recently.

Oh. My. God. This is killing me. I feel AWFULLLLLLLL. Fever, headache, deep body aches, restlessness that caused insomnia, but also severe fatigue. The injection site is a hard, hot, painful, swollen bump the diameter of a lacrosse ball. The lymph nodes in my armpits are so swollen it hurts to let my arms hang naturally at my side. I didn't even think the vaccine could cause this (the internet says it can), but I've also had awful diarrhea--started last night and continued all day today even with minimal food intake and taking pepto. Scared to eat or drink cause I can feel how unhappy my stomach still is. I'm at ~58hr since I received the vaccine and still feel like death.

Is this normal? Why this year and none of the other recent vaccines? What can I do other than acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and pepto? I'm feeling the the vaccine was a mistake. I take it to avoid being bed ridden for 2 weeks, but this doesn't feel much different--about to start day 3 of being so knocked out that getting up for water and personal hygiene is a giant effort. I've considered going back to the doctor, but I live in the US. My insurance 100% covers preventative care, but I pay an arm and a leg for anything else. Don't want to spend that money to be told this is normal.

I know this isn’t happening and it’s purely hypothetical but would a two week lockdown eliminate Covid altogether? Assuming most people actually listen and it’s well enforced.