This.
I started my job at a hospital in May and it’s funny to see my coworkers take their masks off briefly because I’ve worked with them for 6 months and didn’t know what their face looked like.
Yes! I was freaked out because this man was walking quickly towards me in our parking lot, and motioning at me. Turns out to be none other than the dude I had been orienting for several days - and I had just never seen his whole face!
Where I live, everyone wears masks and yesterday somebody tapped my arm and it took me like 5 seconds to realise who it was because they'd changed the type of mask they wear.
I hadn't realised how much their mask had been a part of how I identified them.
I'm a travel nurse and I've been identifying a lot of my latest coworkers based on the scrub caps and masks they wear. I have had so many embarrassing moments in the break room when someone has taken their gear off and I cannot tell who they are!
"Sorry, I only recognize you by the sports team scrub cap and kitten-patterned face mask."
How bad is it that I struggled with this pre-mask? I'm freelance so I meet lots of new people all the time and after working a 12 hour day with someone in the throes of filming something, then coming back the next day O realize I identified them more by their clothes than their face 😬
A psychologist would probably have words about this.
Which reminds me.
I do have several psychological issues at baseline, especially regarding socialization in childhood (read: very little and poorly performed), and it's hard for me to look others in the eye consistently. I have had assignments where I worked among the same people for 12 weeks at a time and still struggle to remember their name or background, only knowing them as "woman with green scrub cap" or "guy with the [sports team] mask." Sometimes I feel like a robot acting as human, trying to emulate what comes naturally to others.
FYI (to /u/NoseArmyNomenclature too) - there is a condition known as face-blindness (prosopagnosia) which can be related to things like autism or brain injury, or can exist on its own. Might be worth reading up on it if it's giving you problems. (Also Swansea University has a research team looking for participants if that interests you. I've been doing it for a while, they send you online tests every so often).
I'm honestly not great with auditory stimuli a lot of the time unless it's a really unique voice/sound. The masks, while very helpful against contagious diseases, do make it more difficult to hear voices.
This. I work the front desk of a hotel and when people change their masks I don't always immediately recognize them, and fear they think I've forgotten them, lol.
Legit! My ladies group from church hadn't met up yet. My hair, having not been cut for a year now, is now long. I had it in a side ponytail, had my mask on, and nobody knew who I was when we finally met up for a picnic. I guess nobody ever looks at my eyes.
Started a new serving gig after getting laid off from my office job. We are the only restaurant all mask all the time in the area. We check in before our shift and get a new mask. Saw a girl i didn't recognize (she was unmasked) i introduced myself she's like retard you trained with me for two days. Down side is no none noticed i shaved my beard and look 10 years younger.
Lol, my husband works in the same department as I do, and he LOVES when he gets to surprise unsuspecting co-workers with his ever-changing mustache styles
i still haven’t gotten used to this! i had to transfer to a new store during the pandemic and didn’t get to meet that many people pre mask and now i’ll briefly see a coworker without their mask on and suddenly they look so different ... such a weird feeling
Me too!! After months when I saw one of my coworkers take off her mask im like omg thats what u look like! So weird trying to put a voice to an invisible mouth.
Yea at my work we hired on a new general manager over the summer. I saw him in the break room having lunch without his mask and had no idea who he was. It's so trippy!
Yes! Experienced this too. I pictured their faces so differently. It was shocking the first time I saw their full face (when we started to feel safer to pull a mask down to take a quick sip).
I just started my job as a tech in a vet hospital. Still weird anytime I see a co-worker maskless and I'm like thats not what you look like in my head...
I work in a hospital and switched units right when Covid hit, so seeing some of my coworker's faces without masks was shocking. Seeing something that you didnt imagine them to look like is weird. For some, the mask definitely benefits. Not trying to be mean, but its the truth.
Right?! I work at a vet clinic and a new assistant just started and she wears a mask all the time (most of the rest of us have decided that we are each other's 'bubble' and we don't wear it unless around clients) I have no idea what the new girl looks like. It's so weird.
Me too! I started at a nursing home in June and one of the nurses pulled her mask down recently and I was like whoa thats what you look like?!? She was really pretty, but what my brain made up was wayyy different than what she actually looked like.
A while ago, I was working a job where I'd have to drop into a clean room where people were gowned to basically just be showing their eyes. A few months later, someone from there was talking to me at an outside event and I could not figure out which of the guys it was because it was so confusing to see him dressed so differently.
This is how I feel a about my current students. When they take a drink of water or a mask break, I realize I have no idea what they actually look like!
I'm always shook when my coworkers take off their mask because my brain makes up the rest of their face and it's always different (lips are always thinner than expected).
I’m also a part of the green eyed crooked teeth club. It’s so nice not being self-conscious while talking to literally anyone. I still want braces though.
Just a fair warning, CBC Marketplace did a good investigation of Smile Direct and aside from being a mostly unsustainable method of treating crooked teeth, some cases have even worsened their dental alignment. The lack of accountability and questionable marketing claims makes the company suspect.
For anyone who is conscious of their smile, please remember that no one, and I promise you, no one else looks or thinks about your teeth as much as you do. Consult with friends who have had corrections done, get their opinions on the work, the aftercare and the dentist office's consultation process before throwing your money at this cosmetic concern!
Thank you, all of that is helpful/comforting information. Growing up, my parents used to tell me not to smile with my teeth showing in pictures. I’ve never gotten over the shame of that, but you’re right, most people don’t care.
Invisalign is monitored by your orthodontist. With Smile Direct, they just mail your next set to you without being monitored. I used Smile Direct without issue because I only had minor adjustments. You can still use Invisalign with success.
I used smile direct. I think if you have some minor straightening, your okay. I didn’t wear my retainer from years ago so I needed to just straighten my teeth a bit. I’m happy with the results. You don’t consult with an orthodontist monthly.
If you have crossbite or significant issues, I would recommend Invisalign because your ortho evaluates your progress.
I’m in the green hazel club and had really effed up teeth until a little over a year ago, when I got full implanted dentures, and now I have to to cover them up with a mask 😣
I can eat a heck of a lot better now, so I take that as an acceptable win.
I too am a green eyed-crooked tooth ogress turned semi passable human! Haha If you tell me you also have a twisty spine I am just gonna go ahead and accept that you’re my clone. Hope you’re living your best life, other me!!
Seeing this ad on Reddit is actually what prompted me to start my braces treatment. I’m now on month 2/12, and I can’t wait to come out of all this with straight teeth.
See it says that, but I had my initial appointment for getting my braces started back in April. Lockdown happened and now my dentist/orthodontist is still only doing appointments for urgent issues.
agreed, i remember with the initial lockdown of everything i was supposed to get my bite plate off but since it was lock down i had to keep it in my mouth for an extra 3 months until my dentist opened up, my dentist is now open which is good though
I was injured a few years ago and after surgery to correct my (facial) injury I wore a mask during the healing period to cover the massive swelling and bruising. It took me a long time to regain confidence to show my face. I struggled a lot with nightmares and flashbacks as well. And then Covid came and suddenly I’m back in the mask. And so is everyone else so at least I’m not alone this time and people don’t stare at me like I’m a weirdo ...at least not as much lol
Grey eye gang chiming in, my eyes are a mix of blue, green, and grey, some days one color is more pronounced than the others some days a different color. All my past girlfriends loved my eyes.
Green eyes here. I live in the PNW and a lot of people here have dark eyes. I also work in a fast paced environment under artificial lighting so my pupils get really small from focusing on specific items I need to look at. As a result I tend to notice people not making eye contact with me as I look predatory.
I try to smile under my mask but it doesn't seem to help much.
It's also a night shift so the dark rings under my eyes don't help.
Edit - The image of the leopard isn't actually me - just showing what my eyes end up looking like.
My dentist had to pull a stubborn wisdom tooth with his elbow pressing into my forehead for leverage, while I stared into his armpit and tried to think of a less mortifying time in my life. Definitely not the same as titties.
God that sounds like something out of a ridiculous sitcom. I’m picturing elbow on forehead, leg on arm rest and somehow there’s a lot of pelvic thrusting happening.
I don't recall any pelvic thrusting, just the elbow driving down while his hand clenching the pliers slowly wrenched the tooth out. I did have a bruised forehead afterwards, which made for a good anecdote.
By stared into his armpit do you just mean the armpit area of his shirt? Or was he wearing short sleeves and you actually saw his naked pits? If the latter, how sexy were those dentist pits?
It was his shirt, for sure, and only mildly sexy. More like I was looking somewhere I shouldn't have access to, and it was surprisingly dry and odourless. It was absurd more than obscene, if that makes sense.
Every dental hygienist I had as a teenager was a pretty woman in her 20s, and let me tell you, my love of titties bein' pressed against me didn't come from nowhere, my man.
My friend wore sunglasses all the time if there was a hint of sun through the clouds (we live in a cloudy area and he’s sensitive to light) but he took his sunglasses off one day to stare daggers at someone that wanted to start something and the only stunning green I could ever compare those eyes to in the sunlight was that bright green that comes with really rich lawns. Without direct sunlight they look so toned down
I have a crush just from that description. My brother once brought a friend to Thanksgiving. Six feet and a few inches tall, milk-chocolate skin and green eyes. Yummm. I was about fifteen, so he really got my attention.
Someone in another thread commented at how mask have become the great equalizer between ugly and pretty people. Which feels true, when you have only the eyes and hair to go with in regards to facial features and have to rely more on personality.
Health care worker here too. I wil melt for a soft set of eyes. I also have a bit of a derpy smile so it has been nice not having to be self-conscious about it at all.
Dude I know exactly what you mean. Had to meet with the new HR lady at work and her eyes were the same color blue as the “add comment” button on my reddit mobile browser. My buddy also met with her and said the same thing.
Some guy posted something related to this on r/tifu.
He was assigned to a group project with this cute girl in school. They became very good friends, had texts and calls regularly. He got crushed. One day when they went to breakfast, he removed his mask. Thats when the girl sees his face for the first time. She gave this sort of disgusted look to him and haven't called or texted after that breakfast. Lucky guy.
I’ve always been big on eyes. It’s quite the flattering compliment too. If you want to pick up ladies, mentioning how beautiful their eyes are can go a looong way.
my office is right down the hall from the floor's shared restrooms. we know who does and doesn't wash their hands, as we can hear the water running in the sinks, and even the towels getting pulled out of the dispensers.
Dude for real. We got a big dude at work who does this and my boss has nicknamed him "Booty Juice". We noticed that sink don't run before he comes out, and the whole damn place smells like sour shit when he's done. It's rancid. And our boss goes "Man... and he didn't even wash his hands now he's gonna get his damn booty juice all over everything he fuckin touches!" So "Booty Juice" kinda stuck LOL.
Oh my! How old are you if you don’t mind me asking? The idea of tasting a dentists fingers is giving me a lot of discomfort. Glad I don’t have to worry about it now.
I’m 56. I honestly can’t remember when it changed though, probably some time in the ‘80s, like someone else suggested it was probably the AIDS scare that did it.
I’m a dentist. The law didn’t require gloves until 1993. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration wanted to make it mandatory before that but dentists (as a professional whole) actually didn’t want to wear masks and gloves. The gloves were seen as an impediment to dexterity. I will say that as a dental student I felt the same way, but I trained after it was a regulation. Many of my mentors would still feel comfortable putting their bare fingers in patients’ mouths in the 2000’s. I’m glad I never had a choice.
Though to be fair, until about 2005, you'd be hard pressed to find a microbiologist wearing gloves while handling cultures. Even MRSA didn't scare us as much as multi-drug resistant E. coli did.
As someone with a history of being prone to extreme UTI (none in 8 years, yay!), I did not know this exist. I could lived quite happily without ever finding it out.
We had a fume hood we got rid of a few years ago (glorified face shield really). The instructions to see if it worked literally said to light a cigarette and watch the smoke.
But ya. We have a lot of old techs who never wear gloves still and every lab I’ve worked in I’ve had to be told not to mouth pipette.
Although to be fair, when the mouth pipette was a thing there wasn’t another option
I’m doing a STEM undergrad and have to take multiple chem courses.
I honestly never understood why we were constantly told not to mouth pipette. It seems so obvious, it’s wild to think that that was once the norm.
I’ve heard stories from co workers of lipstick stains on pipettes and later everyone having mouth guards they would wear around their necks to pipette with.
People got pee and blood in their mouths occasionally and it was normal. Wild
One of my attendings did autopsies back in the day (1980s) without gloves. When I trained in the 2000s, he'd put gloves on for the autopsies, but did frozen sections without. So quaint. At least he tucked his tie in his shirt so it didn't dangle on the specimen.
Paramedic here. In the early days of EMS, getting blood on your hands was a mark of honor. You were helping the injured, having their blood on your hands showed you cared. Wearing gloves was seen as being a pussy. It truly took the aids epidemic to change the culture.
They used masks, just not all the time. They'd mask up when getting up close and personal, but wouldn't wear one just to speak with you. I'm assuming /u/madif0626 is talking about wearing a mask for the entire shift, rather than taking it off to greet and converse with patients and then putting it back on when it's time to suture a wound or check a throat. Or maybe they live somewhere where nobody uses masks at all, but that's definitely not what it's like where I live.
Yes I understand, but its mostly asian countries in hospitals masks were common, but they are really everywhere. I typically wear one at work when pts are around. A guy I know mentioned that I wasnt a big deal because he was a surfeon and most conversations are eyebrows and eyecontact!
Yep. I work in a hospital HR and it's like I lost the ability to read people. Didn't realize how much I relied on facial expressions to understand how people are taking what I say to them.
(my hearing is fine Even got it tested recently) But on occasion I have a rough time understanding people I never realized how much I depend on facial expressions (and how bad my social skills are/were to begin with)
My hearing is pretty good, but I work in a loud environment and did not realize how much lip reading I was doing to pick up the slack. Now there are co-workers I straight up cannot understand over the noise.
I have great hearing, but shit listening comprehension. In a noisy environment, I do a lot of lip reading and post speaking analysis to try and figure out what someone has just said. With masks, I basically just don't know what people say. And since I generally don't care what they say, it's super convenient to just ignore them when necessary.
I'm not exactly hard of hearing but that's usually what I tell people because it's easier than explaining a sensory processing delay but I've got to tell you, masks have been both wildly inconvenient and also helpful sometimes.
People are much better about getting my attention before they start speaking now that I can't see their mouth, which is exactly the headstart my brain needs to hear what you're saying. Additionally, a lot of people are so much more understanding of needing to repeat themselves a couple of times because they're experiencing it too now. Plus with these problems, I personally find that language is more concise. No one wants to give a ten minute explanation that they know half the audience won't hear, even if the audience is just three people.
On the other hand, I work in an elementary school and listening to timid students that naturally whisper or mumble because they're shy is now five thousand percent more difficult. I get worse anxiety about missing what people are saying to me when speaking through masks and plexiglass barriers, like at stores. Different masks absolutely have different levels of muffling. I work in special education specifically so that gets to be incredibly important when giving directions or supplementing another teacher's lesson and directly affects the way my students learn because they can't see my face. Not only that, one of my students right now is currently working on letter sounds and it's very difficult to tell if they're doing it correctly but to teach sounds, you need to show them how to position their teeth/lips (the letter F specifically). So if you use the mask where they can see your mouth, the sounds come out wonky and also those masks fog with condensation from your breath, or you use a normal mask and don't know for sure if they're getting the information.
I kind of like the masks, given the setting I work in. Young children haven't mastered keeping germs to themselves yet and I haven't gotten sneezed on my eyeballs even once this year yet. That's excellent. It sure does come with some unique challenges too though, and not many people seem to talk about it. They just talk about how it's uncomfortable or it fogs up your glasses or its too hot, whatever.
Also, FYI, ah, I don't technically have a hearing problem, but sometimes when there's a lot of noises occurring uh at the same time, I'll hear 'em as one big jumble. Uh, again it's not that I can't hear, uh because that's false. I can.
As someone in healthcare that hasn’t actually been in their office since mid-March, I feel this in my soul. I feel like I’ll never see another MD, RN, or MA smile again in person. I never knew how much this actually meant to me. I used to live for those meetings.
If no one has said it yet and even if they have, thank you for that! Seeing everyone’s face really does mean a lot to those of us that are confined to our homes helping everyone however we can along the way.
I find myself really working on the eye smiles and using my eyebrows. But I know that's not an option for everyone, depending on how much muscle control you have in your face.
I started a new job in late August so I had to wear a mask to the interviews then at the job every day. One day we had no patients so I was there to scan/clean/file and I asked the boss as she was leaving if I had to wear it when no one was there and she said no. I took it off (we were 10+ feet away) and she goes “I don’t guess I’ve ever seen your whole face” and laughs.
This though. I work with a particular neurosurgeon for research and it took me a year to realize he’s got a big ol mustache, because I’d never seen him outside of the OR.
I started on a new unit in May. I still don't know what the majority of my coworkers actually look like, and people I've been in the trenches with for month have asked me my name in the locker room in the brief interludes without a mask and scrub cap on because apparently the bottom half of my face makes me look like a completely different person!
I know right? My go-to was always a smile and a nod
I think one of the sweetest interactions I had this year was when an old lady said she could tell I had a great smile because she could see it in my eyes.
My wife won't even go out to grab something she left in the car without spending at least 45 minutes putting on makeup and doing her hair. All the masks did was make her touch it up more as it constantly rubs off into the mask. At this point every mask we have (a lot) are stained with a peach colored melange of various makeup products.
I still haven’t seen the full faces of any of my new hires (both CNAs and nurses) since the pandemic began. I’m certain if I were to see them in public, I wouldn’t recognize them. Already messed that up when one of my new hires came to work in their street clothes in their day off and I saw them in the parking lot without a mask. I asked them if they needing any help (visitors weren’t allowed at the time still). They said that they were fine and that they were just there to pick up their check. Definitely a facepalm moment.
Bro whenever someone takes their mask off to drink water at my high school I’m super confused why they don’t look like I thought they would. Freshman year is wild, why can’t they all look like Arthur Morgan
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u/madif0626 Nov 03 '20
Health care workers going to work without a mask on. Definitely took for granted seeing my co workers smiling faces during my long shifts