Everytime I leave the house to do anything, I either
- get shit from people because I am wearing a mask -either minimizing and simply gaslighting comments, or plain agression
- when they seemy mask they decide to share their grief with me. It is so hard to listen to all the stories of people dying and becoming disabled from covid, shared by maskless people. I tell them masks work, and they should vaccinate. But it is so tiring. I am just trying to survive. I wish others would help each other survive. I am already tired from my chronic illnesses. Seeing the COVID numbers rise and no one masking or doing anything and staying in denial is horrible for my mental health. I am trying my best to hang on to my sanity. I wish you all that you stay sane too.
Optional strategies
I live in a place that is still about 40% mask wearers. I carry extra masks. When someone is coughing on the train I just silently offer them a mask and stare at them with a slightly indulgent head shrug, so far it’s worked every time.
I think the key is people read into your body language and confidence and respond to that far more then the mask.
Before masks got normalized I used to get a cough every time I flied so I started wearing a mask while flying. Had one steward ask me, in a friendly way, why I was wearing it… Just told her… Oh my throat dries out on these flights and the masks helps.