The new mask normal: How should we be thinking about masking now?

NYTS, 15 February 20222: Washington, D.C., and Maryland today became the latest localities to loosen mask mandates, following similar moves last week from a number of governors across the U.S. President Biden, in an interview over the weekend, said that it was “probably premature” to lift indoor mask mandates, though he acknowledged that it was a “tough call.”

As masking becomes newly optional in fresh situations for many Americans, I asked Tara Parker Pope, the founding editor of Well, for her thoughts on masking.

How should we be thinking about masking now?

In terms of cases, we are exiting the Omicron surge. But there’s still a lot of people getting sick, and just because we’re not at the peak of the surge doesn’t mean we don’t have to take reasonable precautions.

I think everybody has to think about the most vulnerable person in their orbit and consider that person when making decisions. If you use that as your guidepost, then you sort of know the answers. If you have a vulnerable person in your life, you continue to take reasonable precautions, and that means masking around strangers.

But I also believe that vaccines protect us, booster shots protect us and people who are vaccinated can have a fair amount of freedom and don’t need to wear masks all the time.

How can I determine which precautions to take?

A good thing to ask yourself is: What are the consequences of me getting Covid? For some vaccinated people, it might be getting sick and missing a few days of work. And that’s probably a worthwhile trade-off for those people. I encourage my daughter — she’s in her 20s — to spend time with friends and be a young person. I think that if you can, you should. But if the consequences are, I could put somebody vulnerable at risk, whether or not there’s a mask mandate shouldn’t change your decision.

Where should I still wear a mask? Where should I consider taking it off?

In hospitals and airplanes, you should wear a mask — period. Also in airports, trains and places where you’re going to be spending a long time in the same spot. I also think you should wear a mask in places where it’s easy and not that inconvenient. So like the grocery store or running into the dry cleaner — it’s no big deal, so why not just take the precaution?

But outdoor gatherings, outdoor dining, exercising outdoors — one hundred percent take the mask off. I do think family gatherings can be more relaxed, depending on the most vulnerable person.

The harder ones are situations where it’s uncomfortable wearing a mask, like the gym. If you’re younger and healthy, you should be comfortable taking your mask off, but personally I would want to know whether my gym had good ventilation. (A lot of new gyms do, because otherwise they would be stinky.) As for the office, if everyone in your office is vaccinated, and you’re healthy, then I would consider it — nobody wants to wear a mask for eight hours a day, that sounds miserable.

Have you changed your mask routine?

I’m a caregiver now, so I wear a mask and think about social distance. I’m on heightened awareness because I don’t want to bring Covid home.

But I would say that it’s a balancing act. I did have family over for the Super Bowl, and that was important. A year ago, I would not have had the gathering, so that’s a big change for me. We used tests and didn’t wear masks. We’re still cautious, but we’re not going to miss out on time with family.

What’s the takeaway from the lifting of mask mandates?

To me, it feels a bit performative by politicians. I’m not sure how much is really changing. People were already doing pretty much what they wanted. Even with mandates, the reality has been that people who hate masks are lax and wear flimsy masks below those noses and people who don’t mind masks are wearing them correctly.

But let me clarify something. If you are unvaccinated, you should wear a mask, you should avoid crowds and you should hopefully talk to some trusted people about the vaccine and get more information. I recently lost an unvaccinated family member to Covid, and it’s a brutal way to die. It’s a lonely way to die, and it’s a painful way to die. And I don’t wish that on anybody.

And everybody I know has someone in their life who is unvaccinated — a parent, or a friend. Lots of vaccinated people love someone who is unvaccinated, and we have to remember that and continue to try to protect the unvaccinated and the vulnerable.

When long Covid halts exercise

Another possible symptom of long Covid? A post-workout crash.

This worsening of symptoms after engaging in even just a little bit of physical activity is sometimes called “post-exertional malaise,” and it seems to be common among long Covid patients. When researchers performed an online survey of 3,762 people with long Covid, as part of a study published in August, they found that 89 percent reported the condition.

Some people are simply too tired to exercise, while others experience debilitating symptom relapses like fatigue, brain fog or muscle pain afterward.

There are a number of theories on the causes, but experts say these problems are not about becoming out of shape, and they also don’t seem to be a result of lung or heart injury.

In one small study, researchers found that some veins and arteries in long Covid patients were not working properly, preventing oxygen from being delivered efficiently to their muscles.

Other research implicates problems with how the heart rate responds to exercise. One small study found that when women who had recovered from Covid took a six-minute-long walking test, their heart rates didn’t accelerate as much — or recover as quickly — as the heart rates of similar women who had not been infected with Covid-19.

Should Covid patients who are having trouble with exercise continue to ramp up their physical activity? Nobody knows — and opinions differ.

“You can’t just jump into exercise, or you’re going to be set back,” said Natalie Lambert, a biostatistician and health data scientist at the Indiana University School of Medicine. But you should “slowly try to reincorporate it if you are feeling better.” She added that long Covid is complex, so doctors may need to tailor their recommendations.

“That’s really the story of Covid — that for every patient, long Covid is different,” she said. “There’s probably never going to be a one-size-fits-all recommendation for exercise.”

What else we’re following

Ontario will no longer require proof of vaccination to enter indoor spaces, a change that officials said was based on diminishing cases, not a concession to protesters.

Sweden recommended fourth vaccine shots for people 80 and older.

Camilla, the wife of Prince Charles, tested positive four days after her husband was reported to be reinfected.

The Cook Islands, a South Pacific nation known for its strict isolation policy, is confronting its first confirmed case.

Pedestrian deaths are climbing to record levels two years into the pandemic. Authorities cite drivers’ anxiety levels, larger vehicles and fraying social norms.

In Super Bowl ads, companies urged a return to prepandemic normalcy.

What you’re doing

My son was barely 2 when the pandemic began. As he learned to speak, it was apparent that he was not forming sounds properly and needed early intervention. While he is in preschool, he cannot see the mouths of his teachers or classmates for hours on end, which is significantly impacting his own speech. We are worried aboutthe long-term impact of this physical barrier and proper language development. We are praying for the day when he can see others form words and pronounce sounds, especially since he is in an age group which is so low risk.

— Stephanie Vesper, Rockaway, N.J.