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I never considered that before, but thank you for the suggestion. I do have very sensitive skin, so it's a possibility that i will look in to.
Thanks! 
I thought of. I have allergies so that possibility is always in the top five of the first twenty questions.
YW!
Much appreciated! It's so funny how allergies have never occured to me, even though I am prone to them. I just never connected the dots. Thanks so much for your helpful input! 
I think it might be something like that. I go out very infrequently and therefore wear a mask infrequently so I am wondering why I have such a reaction. It's very strange.
something I have not even considered due to my social guilt over always having to wear a mask in public. I mean there are worse things than unsightly facial blemishes, but it's still not normal after wearing a mask for 30 minutes and having a massive outbreak.
I have made an appointment w/ a dermatologist and perhaps there is a better way to protect others and myself. The masks I order are from Amazon/China and I am sure they might have some chemicals on them that irritate my skin. Thanks for your helpful response!
I may need to change the type of mask I wear - which are cheap ones from China. It's possible that there are chemicals or something on them that are irritating my skin. It's funny how it never occurred to me before, but now that so many people have suggested it, it makes a lot of sense.
I am always looking for suggestions and appreciate yours!
And I am looking into finding a better mask. I have made an appointment w/ my doctor and a dermatologist.
I don't go out in public w/out a mask but I am only out infrequetly so it's not like I am exposed all day. The small amout of time that i wear a mask does not warrant the amount of skin damage I am experiencing, so I think an allergy is most likely. It's kind of funny how this has never once occurred to me until people responded to me in this thread.
DU can be so helpful at times. Thanks again!
I think that maybe some of us just have sensitive skin and are either allergic or just reacting to the facial contact, but I hope you are doing better. It's good to know that there are some of us who are having issues but we still continue to wear masks depite our problems.
I feel fortunate to be living in an area where masks are required in almost every establishment and our Covid rate is very low. I appreciate the cooperation from my neighbors and I return the kindness in order to preserve their health.
I still hate having these bumps and blemishes on my skin - they feel worse than they look, but I suppose it's a small price to pay and I will be seeing a dermatologist soon to see how I can prevent it.
Thanks again!
some of the replies to your question and there was some good advice. Hang in there and I hope you can clear things up....pun intended...
As i said in my post I have had no intention of not wearing a mask or endangering others because of my vanity. I appreciate the fact that you understood my concern, while still intending to do my best to be socially responsible. i think most people did not read the post and just reacted negatively.
Anyway, thanks so much for your kindness and thoughtful response.
Not for my sake, but for the sake of others and for society. i am not planning to not wear one because it irritates or inconveniences me. I will do what it takes for as long as it takes to keep us all safe and healthy.
I will follow the guidance of the medical and public health experts and not pay attention to those who needlessly create fear.
Thanks for your feedback!
And I have sensitive skin, so the cold air makes things worse as well for me. i think what I have learned from people here is that I may have an allergy and need to find a different face mask. I live in a very responsible blue neighborhood in a very blue city and we all wear masks all the time everywhere we go.
I would not think of leaving my apartment without one. I was only making a comment about how my skin is irritated by the cheap surgical masks, but fortunately, through the help of DUers it occurred to me that I may have an allergy, which means that i will probably have to find an alternative. And i will.
Thank you for your input. I do appreciate it!
Not implying your masks are "dirty", but like anything on your face, the mask will pick up the oils, creams, sweat, stuff that accumulates over the day. That will stay on your mask. When you wear that mask again and it rubs against your face it could be transferring some of that accumulated stuff to a your skin surface and clogging the pores. Next thing you know a pimple!
I did experience the same thing. Never had acne before. But would occasionally get a pimple on my nose, chin line, cheek bone area; wherever the mask was tight or rubbed against the skin. Also was more with the cloth masks, as opposed to the blue multi layer masks.
I would think because the cloth masks were tighter to my face, especially in the areas I mentioned.
So now I wear the blue masks most of the time. When I do wear a cloth mask I wash it after wearing. Haven't had a problem for quite a while.
Not sure this is your problem, but thought I would share my experience.
And thank you! Sometimes, I will forget and leave the apartment without a mask so i will pull one from my bag which has been "slightly used" before (as in the time it takes me to walk from my apartment to the mail room, so not long).
I suppose I should use a brand new one every single time and I do have a dermatologist appt. coming up so i will see what she says. I am not prone to acne and never have been, which is why it bothers me so much. I think it is contact irritation, as if it was a genuine allergy, I would see more irritation around other parts of my face that are exposed to the mask, but not friction.
