Many of us are allowed to take off our masks. Why some of us don't want to.

[marmar]

(USA Today) Last week, the official word came: If you're vaccinated, you can finally ditch your mask in certain social settings. One might expect the announcement to be met with waves of relief and an immediate shift in behavior. For some there was.

But others remain quietly hesitant — even though it's safe, they don't want to take off their masks yet.

According to new guidelines released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fully vaccinated Americans don’t need to wear a mask outside except in crowded settings, and can unmask during small outdoor gatherings with vaccinated people.

Masks have offered safety during unprecedented times. They were also divisive and often signaled to which political group you belonged, with studies showing that Republicans were less likely than Democrats to wear or believe in the efficacy of masks. ............(more)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/health-wellness/2021/05/06/cdc-says-we-can-take-off-our-masks-why-some-people-arent-ready/4924240001/?

[dalton99a]

1. Kick

[NurseJackie]

2. I'll continue to wear my mask so that nobody assumes I'm a Republican, or a "Karen".

[CurtEastPoint]

3. Same here. I was at a vet this AM, masked, outside, as were all staff and some old fucker came up

and opened the door and was mumbling about 'everybody needs to get rid of those masks.'
I was otherwise occupied or I would have lit into him.

[dalton99a]

4. +1. "It's a free country. Mind your own business"

[Hortensis]

6. :) Can't do anything about my white skin, but I'm NOT a Republican.

Being mistaken for one is as far as my "anxiety" goes, but I took care of that by getting us pins saying so and we do wear them.

Makeup's the other big reason I haven't rushed enthusiastically to ditch my masks.

[Nevilledog]

7. Also, the joy of never worrying if you have a booger. Highly underrated.

[Hortensis]

11. Lol, I guess that's a guy thing. I did go the whole winter

without needing to powder a red nose. And, now that I think of it, without boogers.

I wouldn't mind doing without colds and flu again when the weather turns next fall. And I bet it'd irritate the hell out of those who so deserve it if some of us were wearing masks again to avoid being infected by them.

[Nevilledog]

12. I'm not a guy.

[Hortensis]

13. That's why I wondered! Lousy memory, and I

immediately forgot to "remember" after that didn't sound right.
Sorry.

[Nevilledog]

14. That's okay....I, and any potential boogers, were not offended.

[NurseJackie]

23. I understand.

Makeup's the other big reason I haven't rushed enthusiastically to ditch my masks.

I understand.

[hlthe2b]

5. Meh. I never wore one outside because I was never in crowds. But I will continue wearing indoors

in grocery stores, or any other indoor setting among those whose vaccine status I don't know with absolute certainty. Our Asian colleagues KNEW the importance after SARS and adopted basic face masks immediately. New Zealand likely learned from S. Korea and Thailand and elsewhere. While there was justification in not wanting further decimation of our N95 supply, we were WRONG to not have encouraged alternative type masks from the beginning. Those respected Public Health officials, including Fauci, would undoubtedly admit this today. Mistakes were made--even by our most credible experts, but these were hardly the ones that most led to our overwhelming debacle.

I owe it to my patients, friends, and family not to take chances though I've been among the first vaccinated. As long as there are new variants circulating and our vaccination percentages remain far lower than would be needed to control community spread, I will continue to do so.

This is not hysteria, some MSM hyperbole aside.

[LizBeth]

22. Two walks a day with dog, I didn't wear mask either. I had one in pocket so if I came up on someone

and wanted to chat, I wore masks. I know who in neighborhood who has the shot so could determine when to mask, for the others comfort. And always indoors still.

[Raven]

8. I have not been sick in a year and a half. No colds, no

bronchitis, no nothing. I'm sure it's the mask in addition to not being out and about as much. I'm not going to fool with a good thing and I don't care what anybody says.

[Klaralven]

15. Same here. No colds or flu for over a year

I'll continue wearing masks indoors when with other than immediate family.

No more handshakes, physical contact or getting less than 3 feet from other than immediate family.

Social distancing is a good thing.

Never touch your face when out and about and wash hands vigorously when returning home.

[Hortensis]

26. Me, too, love it! It'll be interesting to see what effect on future

flu outbreaks this year's more frequent hand washing/sanitizer use, hands away from face, etc., may have. I'm also wondering if some masks might be seen here and there next cold and flu season.

[hunter]

30. It's wonderful.

I'm going to keep doing what I've been doing, even if I'm the last one wearing a mask.

Except I will be going to the movies soon. I've really missed that.

[Me.]

9. I Have A Mask

But this last week, when outside and able to distance, I have pulled it down under chin and pull it up again when necessary. I will say it's been a relief to be able to walk, at least for a bit, without it.

[2naSalit]

10. I am going to keep wearing my mask for quite a while yet...

When I am in any setting where strangers are, will carry on with all practices except stay home all the time. And I will be out in the woods with one or two other people and we'll be distanced anyway. So I plan to keep on with being safe.

I went to my favorite bakery yesterday to get lunch and my favorite bakery item, they had been closed for a couple weeks without any notice. They are a small, family business, (mom, dad, two daughters) and I was wondering what was up, they have a full breakfast and lunch menu and have been practicing distance and all that. The youngest daughter was the only one there and they only had bakery case items and beverages/coffee. She had stepped up protection measures, I couldn't touch the thing I put my debit card into or touch the touch screen.

I asked her if everybody was okay because the vibe was weird. She seemed kind of sad, and said that covid went through the family and everyone survived but her mom is still not up to herself.

I'm thinking that if she's going to be a long hauler, they may need to close for a while, mom runs the show.

[underpants]

16. Masks aren't "divisive" not wearing one shows you to be an asshole

an ignorant asshole. You could any one of many kinds of said asshole but you clearly are an asshole.

[peggysue2]

17. I intend to keep masking until the daily incidence of infection is below 20,000

Then and only then will I put the mask away. I read yesterday the daily number has finally dropped below 50,000. So we're getting there and I hope by August Covid will be largely in retreat and we can all resume our normal lives.

But until then? Where I go my mask goes.

My husband and I intend to put our house up for sale this year. June 15th is the target date. One of my stipulations is that people coming in to view the house must be masked. There are far too many people down here who have refused vaccination. So it's either wear a mask or look elsewhere.

[Hekate]

31. House down the block was on the market for some time & had a notice on the front window ...

...that anyone entering to look at it had to wear a mask. Period, no exceptions.

[SheltieLover]

18. Not giving my mask up anytime soon

Really, variants abound & who want to share oxygen with magats?

[tanyev]

19. Yep, I'm good. Don't mind wearing a mask at all.

[rownesheck]

20. I'll keep wearing mine cuz

I've been growing out a righteous mustache which looks absolutely disgusting.

[beaglelover]

21. Now that I'm fully vaccinated I only wear a mask when it is required.

Looking forward to CA completely opening up on 6/15. Hopefully the mask requirements will go away on that date too. Vaccines are available to everyone and easy to get. If you don't get vaccinated that's not my problem. YOU can continue to wear a mask.

[Treefrog]

25. From the CDC:

For now, if you’ve been fully vaccinated:

You should still protect yourself and others in many situations by wearing a mask that fits snugly against the sides of your face and doesn’t have gaps. Take this precaution whenever you are:
In indoor public settings
Gathering indoors with unvaccinated people (including children) from more than one other household
Visiting indoors with an unvaccinated person who is at increased risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19 or who lives with a person at increased risk
You should still avoid indoor large gatherings.
If you travel, you should still take steps to protect yourself and others. You will still be required to wear a mask on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States, and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations. Fully vaccinated international travelers arriving in the United States are still required to get tested within 3 days of their flight (or show documentation of recovery from COVID-19 in the past 3 months) and should still get tested 3-5 days after their trip.
You should still watch out for symptoms of COVID-19, especially if you’ve been around someone who is sick. If you have symptoms of COVID-19, you should get tested and stay home and away from others.
You will still need to follow guidance at your workplace.
People who have a condition or are taking medications that weaken the immune system, should talk to their healthcare provider to discuss their activities. They may need to keep taking all precautions to prevent COVID-19.

[beaglelover]

28. Nope, not on board with wearing a mask forever.

If I get COVID now, there is a 99.999999999% chance that I'll survive and just have a mild illness. Don't care if I can pass it on to the unvaccinated at this point since vaccine's are widely available and free. Young kids who are not yet eligible for vaccines have a 99.9999999999% chance of surviving COVID if they get it, so I'm not too worried about them. YMMV.

[Treefrog]

29. Guess you missed the part about people who are immunocompromised.

I don’t wear one outside because I’m not around people. But inside, it doesn’t bother me in the least to wear one to protect others. But hey, you do you.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

32. +1

[beaglelover]

33. They can wear a mask.

They are the ones at risk they can wear the mask.

[Ms. Toad]

34. Not only the immunocompromised -

But there's a world of difference between not dying - and living with a high quality of life.

Lots of folks, even with mild symptoms, have permanent harm (lung scarring, heart conditions, neurological impairment, etc.)

My personal standard is whether I would take the risk with polio or measles. If I wouldn't, I'm not taking it with COVID.

[Mad_Machine76]

24. My city area

Is still under a mandate and many other businesses still require them indoors. I usually take mine off when I’m just outside walking though. I’ve been fully vaccinated but still a little personally anxious about the variants and lots of unvaccinated people still walking around. What’s really crazy is that it wasn’t until I was vaccinated that I got sick with a head cold or something for the first time since before COVID even began.

[Raftergirl]

27. Outside when walking the dog

I rarely had to wear a mask because I rarely encountered other people. Always bring it with me just in case. I did wear it all winter because it kept my face and nose warm. When we went on nature hikes in the nice weather we did put our masks on when encountering anyone and they all put masks on, too.

I wouldn’t think of going inside anywhere without wearing a mask and everyone where I live wears one also.

We visited our kid last Sunday and where he lives (Salem, MA) there is a mandatory mask mandate in the downtown business district ) Signs posted everywhere that there is a mask mandate. Every one was masked. Even at the park where we went to have a picnic lunch and where the wind was blowing like crazy (it’s on the ocean) everyone had their masks on. Young, old, didn’t matter. All masked.

Kid told me the town said they are not lifting the mask mandate any time soon.

Drove by our high school yesterday afternoon and different teams were on all the fields. Only got a good look at girls softball and they all had masks on.

[Solly Mack]

35. I like mine. Won't be putting them down yet.

I've got quite the collection now.