Laugh @ kooky Kovid kultists with Legion
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Aimee, a 44-year-old screenwriter who lives in Los Angeles, said that wearing a mask in public even after she’s been vaccinated gives her a kind of “emotional freedom”. “I don’t want to feel the pressure of smiling at people to make sure everyone knows I’m ‘friendly’ and ‘likable’,” she said. “It’s almost like taking away the male gaze. There’s freedom in taking that power back.”
Bob Hall, a 75-year-old retired researcher in New Jersey with a self-described “naturally grim countenance. Tends to be off-putting to others”, concurred. “In the United States there is an obligation to appear happy, and I get told to smile and ‘be happy’ a lot, which is very annoying,” he said. “The mask frees me from this.”
For Elizabeth, a 46-year-old tutor living near Atlanta, Georgia, the mask has accomplished for her social anxiety what years of therapy and medication have not: allowing her to feel comfortable while out in the world.
“I’m short and fat and if I don’t moisturize compulsively, my face is constantly flaking,” she said. “It’s easy to feel like I’m surrounded by mocking, disapproving eyes. Nothing has shielded me from the feeling of vulnerability like a mask has.”
Hartley Miller, a 33-year-old tech worker in San Francisco, said that the past year of constant, camera-on Zoom calls has seriously exacerbated her body dysmorphia, a mental health condition that involves obsessive thinking about a perceived flaw in one’s appearance.
“I just stare at that little box with my face in it and pick apart my appearance,” she said, noting that her distress is affecting her job performance. “My double chin seems six times larger, my eye bags are too deep of a purple, etc … Even when there’s a heatwave and my apartment is close to 90 degrees, I’ll wear a turtleneck that I can pull up. I pack on thick makeup that makes my skin peel.”
Going out in public with a black surgical mask that covers her chin and sunglasses that cover her eye bags provides Miller with an escape from that sense of scrutiny.
“I 10,000% plan on wearing it for the foreseeable future,” she said. “After a full work day of worrying and not being able to focus on my actual job, it just feels nice to blend in. Simply put, I’m sick of being perceived.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/may/10/the-people-who-want-to-keep-masking-its-like-an-invisibility-cloak?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1620645421
Bob Hall, a 75-year-old retired researcher in New Jersey with a self-described “naturally grim countenance. Tends to be off-putting to others”, concurred. “In the United States there is an obligation to appear happy, and I get told to smile and ‘be happy’ a lot, which is very annoying,” he said. “The mask frees me from this.”
For Elizabeth, a 46-year-old tutor living near Atlanta, Georgia, the mask has accomplished for her social anxiety what years of therapy and medication have not: allowing her to feel comfortable while out in the world.
“I’m short and fat and if I don’t moisturize compulsively, my face is constantly flaking,” she said. “It’s easy to feel like I’m surrounded by mocking, disapproving eyes. Nothing has shielded me from the feeling of vulnerability like a mask has.”
Hartley Miller, a 33-year-old tech worker in San Francisco, said that the past year of constant, camera-on Zoom calls has seriously exacerbated her body dysmorphia, a mental health condition that involves obsessive thinking about a perceived flaw in one’s appearance.
“I just stare at that little box with my face in it and pick apart my appearance,” she said, noting that her distress is affecting her job performance. “My double chin seems six times larger, my eye bags are too deep of a purple, etc … Even when there’s a heatwave and my apartment is close to 90 degrees, I’ll wear a turtleneck that I can pull up. I pack on thick makeup that makes my skin peel.”
Going out in public with a black surgical mask that covers her chin and sunglasses that cover her eye bags provides Miller with an escape from that sense of scrutiny.
“I 10,000% plan on wearing it for the foreseeable future,” she said. “After a full work day of worrying and not being able to focus on my actual job, it just feels nice to blend in. Simply put, I’m sick of being perceived.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/may/10/the-people-who-want-to-keep-masking-its-like-an-invisibility-cloak?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1620645421
Mask appeal: The addiction of surgical masks in Japan
Spring has come - and with it, teary eyes and runny noses for those with hay fever, as pollen is released into the air with each gust of wind that comes with the change in seasons.
This is the start of the peak sales season for surgical masks in Japan.
Anyone visiting the country at this time of the year will find it hard to walk on the streets and not meet anyone wearing a mask.
But if you stay in Japan long enough, you would realize that the Japanese love affair with the surgical masks goes beyond health and hygiene - to the realm of psychology and even pathology.
While many wear the mask as a defense against allergens, some use it as a cover-up, a shield against social situations that trigger anxiety.
Figures attest to a phenomenon some have termed "mask dependency".
For many people, especially women, masks are for days when they feel less attractive.
"I wear masks on days when I don't have time to put on make-up before going out," said Ms Mai Hashimoto, a business marketing officer in her 30s.
She goes through about a dozen masks every two weeks.
"Now, there are many types of masks to choose from, such as those that can make your face look smaller, and they also come in various colours, which is nice," she added.
Mr Eiji Takahashi, a salesman in his 40s, said he started wearing masks regularly about five years ago.
"During the dry winter months, I found that wearing masks helped to keep my throat moisturised. It also keeps my face warm when I'm outdoors," he said.
"Now, it's become a habit."
Since 2012, some matchmaking companies have even started offering speed dating where participants are required to wear surgical masks. The purported aim is to encourage participants to get to know their would-be sweethearts without judging each other first by looks.
Such matchmaking events have proven to be a hit and have spread all over Japan.
The spokesman for a Tokyo-based organiser, Mask Matchmaking, said: "Wearing masks sometimes makes it hard to hear what the other person is saying, so naturally, people draw nearer to each other."
But for some Japanese, wearing masks has become an addiction.
Mr Yuzo Kikumoto, who set up professional counselling service Kikiwell in 2006, was the first to coin the term "mask dependency" in a paper he wrote in 2009.
People were wearing surgical masks not for the purposes they were intended for, he wrote, but because they had grown used to living behind the anonymity of a mask.
The situation has got even more serious in recent years, Mr Kikumoto told The Straits Times.
The number of mask addicts seeking counselling at his practice has increased by 50 per cent since 2009, he said.
Sufferers are mostly in their 30s to 40s, with women making up slightly more than half of the number , or 60 per cent.
"While some people used to feel safe or secure when going out with a mask, it has reached a stage where they cannot go out without wearing a mask. That's how serious it is getting," said Mr Kikumoto, who is a frequent guest on local TV talk shows and news programmes.
The reason for mask dependency, he said, is a feeling of insecurity in public, exacerbated by the proliferation of social media. Many who use social media frequently have become more self-conscious and crave the praise and approval of others. Those who lack such affirmation may then suffer from a deeper sense of inferiority, he added.
"The mask acts as a security blanket, and people with this addiction cannot talk to people without wearing a face mask. And society's acceptance of interactions behind masks perpetuates such a dependency," said Mr Kikumoto.
Like any addiction, treatment needs to start with recognition and admission, he added.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/mask-appeal
Spring has come - and with it, teary eyes and runny noses for those with hay fever, as pollen is released into the air with each gust of wind that comes with the change in seasons.
This is the start of the peak sales season for surgical masks in Japan.
Anyone visiting the country at this time of the year will find it hard to walk on the streets and not meet anyone wearing a mask.
But if you stay in Japan long enough, you would realize that the Japanese love affair with the surgical masks goes beyond health and hygiene - to the realm of psychology and even pathology.
While many wear the mask as a defense against allergens, some use it as a cover-up, a shield against social situations that trigger anxiety.
Figures attest to a phenomenon some have termed "mask dependency".
For many people, especially women, masks are for days when they feel less attractive.
"I wear masks on days when I don't have time to put on make-up before going out," said Ms Mai Hashimoto, a business marketing officer in her 30s.
She goes through about a dozen masks every two weeks.
"Now, there are many types of masks to choose from, such as those that can make your face look smaller, and they also come in various colours, which is nice," she added.
Mr Eiji Takahashi, a salesman in his 40s, said he started wearing masks regularly about five years ago.
"During the dry winter months, I found that wearing masks helped to keep my throat moisturised. It also keeps my face warm when I'm outdoors," he said.
"Now, it's become a habit."
Since 2012, some matchmaking companies have even started offering speed dating where participants are required to wear surgical masks. The purported aim is to encourage participants to get to know their would-be sweethearts without judging each other first by looks.
Such matchmaking events have proven to be a hit and have spread all over Japan.
The spokesman for a Tokyo-based organiser, Mask Matchmaking, said: "Wearing masks sometimes makes it hard to hear what the other person is saying, so naturally, people draw nearer to each other."
But for some Japanese, wearing masks has become an addiction.
Mr Yuzo Kikumoto, who set up professional counselling service Kikiwell in 2006, was the first to coin the term "mask dependency" in a paper he wrote in 2009.
People were wearing surgical masks not for the purposes they were intended for, he wrote, but because they had grown used to living behind the anonymity of a mask.
The situation has got even more serious in recent years, Mr Kikumoto told The Straits Times.
The number of mask addicts seeking counselling at his practice has increased by 50 per cent since 2009, he said.
Sufferers are mostly in their 30s to 40s, with women making up slightly more than half of the number , or 60 per cent.
"While some people used to feel safe or secure when going out with a mask, it has reached a stage where they cannot go out without wearing a mask. That's how serious it is getting," said Mr Kikumoto, who is a frequent guest on local TV talk shows and news programmes.
The reason for mask dependency, he said, is a feeling of insecurity in public, exacerbated by the proliferation of social media. Many who use social media frequently have become more self-conscious and crave the praise and approval of others. Those who lack such affirmation may then suffer from a deeper sense of inferiority, he added.
"The mask acts as a security blanket, and people with this addiction cannot talk to people without wearing a face mask. And society's acceptance of interactions behind masks perpetuates such a dependency," said Mr Kikumoto.
Like any addiction, treatment needs to start with recognition and admission, he added.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/mask-appeal
What's your score?
Welcome to the COVID Charts Quiz!
In 2020 people were told that business closures, stay-at-home orders, lockdowns, and mask mandates were necessary to slow the spread of SARS-CoV-2.
Some people expected that places where these measures were absent or implemented half-heartedly would have drastically worse results.
With more than a year of these measures behind us, it's time to evaluate the results.
Preliminary academic studies have already been published, and they deserve our attention. This quiz is intended for the layman, because if these radical measures were truly justified the results should be clear and unambiguous in the data.
So let's take a look.
Welcome to the COVID Charts Quiz!
In 2020 people were told that business closures, stay-at-home orders, lockdowns, and mask mandates were necessary to slow the spread of SARS-CoV-2.
Some people expected that places where these measures were absent or implemented half-heartedly would have drastically worse results.
With more than a year of these measures behind us, it's time to evaluate the results.
Preliminary academic studies have already been published, and they deserve our attention. This quiz is intended for the layman, because if these radical measures were truly justified the results should be clear and unambiguous in the data.
So let's take a look.
https://www.covidchartsquiz.com/
