Dear old friend, trusted confidant, colleague (take your pick) of many years before this thing called #Covid came for almost everyone—
—almost everyone but me and my fellow rebellious information- and situation-privileged weirdos and outcasts who still wear an #N95 or at least #KN95 around anyone outside their household, that is, plus some tiny unstudied group of people who seem to have true sterilizing immunity—
I’m having a hard time lately with this damn #pandemic and you’ve always… 🧵
A few days ago I did a poll on attitudes about the #SARS2#virus after getting #Covid. This being Mastodon where all the smart people are, I wasn’t surprised to see a lot of you still being cautious—nowadays, half is definitely a lot.
In the general population, it’s obvious to anyone who goes anywhere in public that most people are more willing to take risks and less concerned about it. This has not happened because there’s been some actual scientific information that those risks are lower. 🧵
5/ …viral generations ago as humans since we were all living in caves.) This thing has mutated into a form that laughs at our vaccines, sneaks around the edges of those comfy #KN95 masks we wish we could still get away with wearing, and leaves most people capable of walking around carrying it in their noses rather than lying in bed trying not to die.
It’s become an incredibly efficient RNA replication machine, and it infects and changes brain cells. Really, it does that. I’ve seen the studies.
Me and my favorite fellow walkers at the #walktoendalzheimers this morning. Really good turnout. Given my partner and I both caught COVID from an outdoor exposure previously, I donned my hot pink #KN95 because #CovidIsNotOver . #COVIDSMART I did see one other mask in the crowd. Wish there would've been more.
Expected CDC guidance on N95 masks outrages health care workers. #COVID19
“It’s shocking to suggest that we need more studies to know whether N95 masks are effective against an airborne pathogen,” said Kaitlin Sundling, a physician and pathologist at the UW-Madison, in a comment following the June meeting. “The science of N95 masks is well established and based on our scientific understanding of how airborne transmission works.”
@DebErupts I haven't asked my #medical center why the general staff use surgical masks instead, but at my recent #surgery they didn't ask me to take off my kn95 and put on a surgical #mask like they did last year, when masks were required.
I usually use #kn95 simply because it is hard to find #n95 that don't go behind the head and not only do the elastic straps tangle in my hair, my upper body #disabilities make them hard to put on properly.
KN95 masks are available FREE to NYers at a public health vending machine in Brooklyn. At present, it looks like there may be only one machine, although more are planned in the future (happy to be corrected on this by someone with more knowledge on the subject).
‘It is well-established that #N95s offer more protection than surgical masks against breath-emitted #airborne#pathogens and #wildfire smoke, which are micron-size fine particles.’ Recommended reading and references @TheWHN#CovidIsAirborne
@JoePajak I have COPD and other factors that put me at high risk for infection and lung damage from pollutants. I wear #N95 or #KN95 or better every time I go somewhere. My spouse and I are usually the only ones masked. I can tell you unequivocally that wearing N95 in times of fire/smoke as well as high virus times will ease, and maybe save, your life.