This important news even if most people that care already new it. It’s important on the face of it, it’s important the WHO is acknowledging it (again), AND it’s important that the CDC still won’t admit it.
Masks work. Indoor fresh-air ventilation works. The US Gov’t says, “Your job is to keep shopping…nothing to see here.”
That headspace where I’m watching a documentary on Juggalos and finding myself thinking … “fuck, I think I may be into this #ICP thing after all”
Noticed I was maintaining the same opinion I formed twenty years ago, and it’s maybe time to re-evaluate. I’m finding some really interesting contrasts.
With #autistic#masking, my past avoidance of the subculture makes perfect sense. Very similar past-tolerance / new-affinity feeling as I’ve found for #furry folks
On #COVID#masks#masking, I frequently read (and empathize with) people around here posting abt comments by various ppl questioning their masks. It sucks!
Wanted to give an other perspective: I've worn N95s (pillowy Dräger 1750) at the office for 2 years (incl. dozens of business meetings) and nobody's ever said anything about it. (A couple of "are you sick today or just cautious" in 2 years.)
Your mileage may vary, but in case you've been thinking about trying, hope hearing that might help?
“'A question shadowing suits such as these is whether there is a #FirstAmendment right to refuse to wear a protective mask as required by valid health and safety orders put in place during a recognized #PublicHealth emergency. Like all courts to address this issue, we conclude there is not...
Anyone with #ADHD and/or #ASD can tell me about their experience with masking?
I have a hard time relaxing and recharging my social batteries unless I'm alone or just in the company of animals.
How do you manage #masking and your social battery around your SO? Is it possible to deprogram the automatic tendency to mask even with people you love?
To give you an idea about my masking, I feel like my social interactions are based on following a script or doing a performance even if it's super unconscious and automatic.
Just learned about the concept but it's evident that this is what I'm doing constantly when interacting with people and the reason why I crave alone time to unwind and recharge.
I currently make an urgently needed clean slate regarding my browser tabs - and so read for the 100s time the Wiki article on #masking. And it just came to me as a flash insight [the German word Geistesblitz is a thing in English, right?]: Masking could be compared to Emotional Labor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_labor ! I learned about the underlying psychological strategies + concepts during my 2nd studies, also about advice on how to survive it sanely. Maybe this could be a support for @actuallyautistic?
At this point, I know maybe 6 or 7 people (8 if you include me) irl, that haven't been infected with #Covid19.
Every time I tell people I've never gotten #Covid , they seem shocked.
All the people I know who are #Novid do at least 2 of the following.
Not spending time indoors unmasked around others that aren't in their "bubble." If they do see people outside their bubble, they try to do stuff outside. If it has to be indoors, everyone must #MaskUp when inside
Don't spend a lot of time in public places indoors - especially when there are crowds.
Having common shared agreements about #CovidPrecautions with the people they do see unmasked (usually about 3 people total - sometimes less - and it's pretty much always the people they live with).
#Masking in public using high-quality and well fitted masks (N95/KF94/KN95) - everyone I know who has remained Covid free is doing this.
I've watched basically every single person I know catch Covid, some of them multiple times, and it gets harder for me to comprehend how myself and others are screaming from the rooftops about #LayersOfProtection , yet they're still not #MaskingUp.
It's honestly just exhausting at this point because not only can the social isolation get you down sometimes, but I'm also just tired of seeing my friends get sick.
Over the holidays VLGF and I looked at dismay at our local and #provincial#covid monitoring results (#wastewater, hospitalizations, new cases etc) and decided that when we went back in public, or to work, we'd be #masking.
My first day back on Tuesday I ran into the COO and CEO (med. size company) in the breakroom, me sporting my mask, and they asked why the mask Spruce?
Five months ago today, I was recovering from my first (known) #COVID infection. It took me weeks to feel normal.
Now, as I prepare to get on a plane next week for the first time since then, I am incredibly nervous and anxious. Especially cuz I know I'll be one of only a few people #masking at the airport and on the plane.
Maybe we'll all luck out and not catch the latest variant. Maybe the risk will seem worth it to see my family.
The phrase "burnt out former gifted kid" has always given me the ick, but there are unique challenges/issues/traumas related to that experience that tend to come up in #autistic discussions and I've never encountered a good description.
Proposal for a slightly less icky alternative:
✨ burnt out former high achiever ✨
We think you may have forgotten about us. Or, at the very least, you are trying to. The new normal in society at large excludes many people, among them some of your comrades: us. Need we remind you that disabled and chronically ill people can be radical leftists? The entire range of self-proclaimed radical leftist politics should include anti-ableism by default. Without anti-ableism as a founding principle, all that remains of the radical left project is hypocrisy.
CDC director recommends #masking against tide of rising respiratory illnesses, including #COVID
The CDC hasn’t seen anything new in terms of viruses or sickness, but recommended a handful of precautions
By Nicole Karlis
December 7, 2023
"CDC director Mandy Cohen released a video this week about how to take precautions this winter as the #pirola clan outpaces previously dominant COVID-19 variants, alongside the rise of other respiratory viruses across the country. In the video, Cohen said respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) cases are 'elevated.' COVID-19 is starting to increase again, and pneumonia cases are also on the rise. Cohen specifies the CDC hasn’t seen anything new in terms of viruses or sickness.
"Still, she recommends taking specific precautions for people to protect themselves, like getting the updated COVID-19 vaccine, this season’s influenza vaccine, and the RSV vaccine for those over the age of 60. Additional layers of protection, she said, include washing your hands, improving #ventilation, and wearing a #mask.
"As masking recommendations eased up over the summer, the CDC appears to be tightening its guidance on masking this winter in light of Cohen’s latest video briefing. In May 2023, the CDC advised healthcare facilities to take a risk-based approach when it came to universal masking in healthcare facilities. In addition to masks, Cohen urged Americans to get tested when they’re sick in order to receive proper treatment. As of November 20, 2023, households in the U.S. are eligible for another order of four free coronavirus tests.
"'CDC will continue to closely monitor respiratory illnesses including respiratory viruses and pneumonia spreading across the US and around the world,' Cohen said. 'And we'll be sure to share additional updates and information.'"
So my 24 year old coworker has called in sick again, it's basically every couple of weeks. He's been wearing a mask and social distancing, besides coming to work, since March 2020.
Is it possible that he has wrecked his immune system by wearing a mask basically 24/7 for close to 4 years now? I'm serious, I can't find any data one way or the other but no one else I know is as sick as frequently as this 24 yr old guy.
Spain makes face masks mandatory in hospitals and clinics after a spike in respiratory illnesses (apnews.com)
Spain’s government says face masks will be mandatory in hospitals and healthcare centers starting Wednesday due to a surge in respiratory illnesses.