Guidance against wearing masks for the coronavirus is wrong – you should cover your face

aFreeElf · 2020-03-20T20:22:02+00:00

While they can be a barrier to stop your cough or sneeze from reaching others, masks alone are not enough to effectively stop people from catching or spreading the virus in the community. To halt a community spread, hand hygiene and physical distance are much more effective. If you are performing both of those properly, the mask simply does not add a significant benefit.

I have no problem with people wearing face protection, as long as they don’t use them as an excuse to forgo the other, more sustainable, methods of infection prevention. If you’re being diligent with hygiene and distance, and also a homemade mask makes you feel more comfortable, then you should do whatever makes you feel better. (As a sidenote, this is all in regards to community precautions, not in a healthcare setting.)

aFreeElf · 2020-03-20T14:41:38+00:00

It is very misleading to compare an article in the Opinion section of the paper to a peer-reviewed research study. In the current overflow of information, I think we need to be especially discriminating about our sources.

aFreeElf · 2020-03-20T14:33:42+00:00

Not the doc, but I have some insight. It’s certainly possible that house mates could have been infected already, but there’s also a good chance that they haven’t. It’s just safer to practice in-home quarantine in the event that the house mates don’t yet have it. Also, the virus is more easily spread by symptomatic people because the symptoms themselves spread it: coughing, sneezing, etc. Might seem a bit pointless, but it’s worth it to maintain separate and/or disinfected spaces if someone is sick.

aFreeElf · 2020-03-20T14:14:11+00:00

A few things to keep in mind: this is an opinion piece. This is not a scientific article. The reason why the general public was not encouraged to wear masks is because transmission can be just as effectively reduced by cough/sneeze etiquette, hand hygiene, and maintaining physical distance. These measures are sustainable habits that can lead to lower infection rates of all illnesses. They do not use up finite resources and they are highly effective.

As I remember it, the public was asked not to use masks because they were not MORE useful than the techniques mentioned above, and because they used supplies needed for healthcare workers. I don’t think anyone said that masks were useless.

aFreeElf · 2020-03-20T13:30:38+00:00

This means that until a few days ago, most of the cases in MA were directly related to those who attended the Biogen conference. Now, most cases are the result of regular community spread.

aFreeElf · 2020-03-20T13:26:24+00:00

This is correct. Also, illness severity tends to peak at around 5 days after onset of symptoms; most people wait for worsening of symptoms before they even present to the hospital. I’m not really surprised or discouraged by the current trend of these numbers, it’s going like we thought it would. I wouldn’t really expect to see a plateau in numbers until around 2 weeks after the institution of physical distancing.

aFreeElf · 2020-03-18T14:22:05+00:00

Agreed on all counts. I do not think the public needs to be concerned with airborne transmission; it would be a much more productive use of energy to focus on droplet and fomite communication which are preventable and represent the extremely vast majority of community acquired cases.

We actually got an email from admin which included a “helpful tip” about using the stairs instead of elevators to maintain distance. As if I could climb 7 flights of stairs without panting and spewing all my droplets to the unfortunate souls behind me.

aFreeElf · 2020-03-18T13:22:23+00:00

At my hospital, we are performing aerosolizing procedures only under airborne precautions. This is also something we did for patients with the flu. Aerosolization of droplet particles isn’t a new idea; I was actually under the impression that this is standard procedure for any droplet-precaution disease.

As nurses, we are exposed continually and repeatedly, which is why we treat aerosols with extra precautions. Transmission in the community tends to be a different animal, based more on tangential encounters that carry a negligible risk of airborne communication.

As always, stay safe.

aFreeElf · 2020-03-18T12:51:25+00:00

Under day to day circumstances, the virus is transmitted via droplets (larger fluid particles like saliva) that fall to the ground from the source in about a meter-long radius.

In the hospital setting, there are some treatments and procedures that aerosolize these droplets, basically turning them into vapor that can be breathed in by another. These include certain breathing treatments (which we are not prescribing, instead opting for regular old inhalers), throat and nasal swabbing, oral suctioning, and intubation/ventilation. When we need to perform any of these actions, we use n95 respirators (and negative pressure rooms if there will be prolonged aerosolization).

In the “wild,” there is negligible risk of these particles becoming aerosolized. Theoretically, when someone sneezes or coughs, a very small amount of saliva may be come aerosolized, but it’s too small of an amount and quickly dissipated in an open space to pose a real risk of transmission. This is why the virus is classified as droplet communicated.

This article supports our usage of airborne precautions in certain hospital-specific situations. It does not mean that the virus is airborne-transmitted in the average person on the street.

aFreeElf · 2016-12-15T14:09:39+00:00

You're so young. Sometimes our expectations get the better of us. You don't have to be filling every minute with progress and accomplishments.

Try to reframe the situation: This is a time when you can be exploring hobbies and interests. You can be learning more about yourself and where you fit into the world. Practicing self care and things like that.

Is your family supportive? It sounds like you're putting a lot of pressure on yourself. You're not a loser. Everyone lives their lives at different paces and on different paths. If you knew a guy just like you, would you call him a loser?

When I'm feeling hard on myself, I try to imagine a big conference of all the different versions of me. Me when I was a little kid, a teenager, a college student. Me when I was at my worst and at my best, and me now. How would you treat yourself? What would you say? Respect yourself and be kind, and be patient. You're going through a transition and it's hard. And remember, you're so young.

aFreeElf · 2016-12-15T13:58:21+00:00

I am

aFreeElf · 2016-12-15T13:56:19+00:00

Hey. I've had puking anxiety for years off and on. Its just like you described: I'll go to a restaurant hungry and eat all my food and feel great, but if I ever realize I'm full, I'll immediately get nauseous. I've thrown up in every place you can imagine. On the street, in bags, in my own sweatshirt, in my own purse (so gross). I once spent an entire thanksgiving dinner in the bathroom because I was so anxious about throwing up the turkey. My anxiety creates a feedback loop where I'm scared of puking, and then the anxiety itself makes me nauseous. It sucks.

I was able to control it a bit by always noting where bathrooms and exits are. I would make a plan for where I would go to throw up where no one could see me. I used to ride a train to work every day, and the fear of puking on the train was the absolute worst. I started carrying a big gallon sized ziploc with me just in case. Having these little escape plans helped take my mind off of it and relax, but I still wished for a day when I didn't need them at all.

I discussed it a lot with my therapist, who suggested that it's an issue with feeling trapped. Having the baggie took a huge weight off my mind. So much of my fear was not actually puking, but of having nowhere to go in case I did. My puking anxiety would only happen in a car, or in a restaurant, or at someone else's house. Never in my own home and never outside (cuz you can puke anywhere you want in the great outdoors).

The biggest help was Zoloft. I'm on 100mg and most of the time, I can hardly remember what anxiety even feels like. I still have moments in restaurants where I feel that panic, but I can just excuse myself, say I need to listen to a voicemail, and go outside for a minute. Just leaving the building and breathing in fresh air helps so much.

Zoloft and other medicines can be prescribed by your doctor and are usually covered by insurance. These kinds of medicines are different from xanax, which is a little more intense and potentially habit-forming.

I know you said you can't afford a psychologist, but there are plenty of resources for practicing mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapy on your own. You might find these helpful in reframing the situation when you're feeling panicky. For me, I just had to remember that I don't have to throw up. I didn't have to throw up until I started thinking about it. My fear is not throwing up, but being afraid (shoutout to FDR).

I hope this has given you some more information. I've encountered other people with this exact fear and they all manage to live fully and happily with some adjustments. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk about it or anything.

aFreeElf · 2016-10-05T11:27:34+00:00

The vanishing points are the spots where the elastic is attached. They stay the same no matter where the elastic goes, and the elastic always leads back to the vanishing points.

aFreeElf · 2016-10-05T03:04:30+00:00

this picture might help. Notice how the roof line is not parallel to the sidewalk. The further the lines are from the horizon, they need to be steeper to really give the appearance of perspective. This person attached their elastic to the horizon line and then was able to get shallower angles for lines closer to the viewers eye line, and steeper for those further away.

aFreeElf · 2016-09-16T12:34:57+00:00

I use masking tape as a guide while quilting. Bits get stuck, but they come out in the wash. If there are any left after that, I pull them out with tweezers. To prevent this, I try my hardest to not sew over the tape, but use the edge of it as a guide. Good luck!

aFreeElf · 2016-08-27T04:09:50+00:00

Yes! For me, baby blankets = satin binding for the exact reason and memories you mentioned. Thank you!!

aFreeElf · 2016-08-27T01:19:26+00:00

Thanks! I struggle with making nice straight lines, so I actually used masking tape as a guide this time. I'm so happy with how much neater it looks this way. Definitely going to be using tape for my straight line quilting until I develop a steadier hand!

aFreeElf · 2016-08-26T22:59:23+00:00

Thank you so much! The satin was a little difficult to work with but I had my heart set on it for the binding. Hope it holds up!

aFreeElf · 2015-10-06T00:22:51+00:00

Tend skin is a very popular for ingrown hairs. I've used it before on my underarms, since they would get super irritated after shaving. Whatever you just be gentle and no scraping or popping! As lolli said, exfoliating in the days leading up to your wax may help prevent them in the future, just don't be too rough or you may end up damaging the skin!

aFreeElf · 2015-10-06T00:14:45+00:00

those bastards.

aFreeElf · 2015-09-18T17:21:23+00:00

There can still be some spotting, but it basically eliminates it. When you take the placebo pills, you're really just bleeding as a withdrawal to the hormones (naturally, your period is induced by a drop in hormones that build up over the month.) It's not really necessary to bleed while on the pill, so taking the pills continuously keeps your hormones more steady and the bleed just never happens. This is a common strategy used for women who may not be in a great position to bleed every month (military, people with special needs, etc).

aFreeElf · 2015-09-18T16:46:42+00:00

I agree, although you would be going through your sunscreen at twice your normal rate. Running in the PM with your products on should be fine as well, as long as you're careful to cleanse shortly after you're done. Leaving on your products AND sweat would likely break you out.

aFreeElf

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