Something to consider regarding masks/children

[StaceyinLA]

I’m not trying to be controversial, and am not going to get back on here and argue at all regarding any of this. It’s just for informational purposes, and obviously comes from a single person’s experiences, but this came up today and I found it interesting enough to share. Obviously there is no possible way to have long-tern studies at this point regarding effects of mask use period, much less in children, so I thought this was worth mentioning here.

My dd’s father-in-law is a pediatrician, and her mother-in-law does ultrasounds for a pediatric cardiologist. We were talking a bit ago and Covid came up. She was saying they have been swamped with patients in for ultrasounds due to elevated heart rates, BP increases, etc. She also said that she has been noticing many kids having extremely elevated heart rates when getting their ultrasounds, as in 160+ bpm (and not little kids - 11-12 yo kids). She has had them remove their masks, and within a couple minutes, their heart rates drop considerably.

Obviously she is one person at one pediatric cardiologists’ office, but she is very concerned at what all of this, not just masks, is doing to children. She said the anxiety levels from everything that is going on, coupled with them wearing masks, and being anxious about wearing the masks, is absolutely affecting the overall health and well-being of a lot of the kids they are seeing.

I just think this is interesting to note with schools planning to open and have kids wearing masks all day. Do we really have any clue what the effects of this will be on our children?

Edited July 31, 2020 by StaceyinLA

[maize]

Some people, adults or kids, seem to start breathing shallowly or hyperventilating when they put on a mask; I suspect this is behind some of these observations. We can probably help by explicitly talking kids through the process of learning to breathe in a mask--teach them to take regular, deep breaths for example. Like how we have to teach choir kids not to lock their legs when they are standing and singing.

And we can help kids find masks that are comfortable for them.

[Moonhawk]

I do wonder if a lot of the rhetoric around masks is close to a/as negative effect more than as well as the mask itself. Since we are talking about anecdotes: I've basically sheltered my kids from all of this -- not exactly intentionally, they just aren't going anywhere, we don't watch TV, and it's not our dinner discussion, etc. -- and on the 1 occasion they had to leave the house and wear a mask, they spent half the time pretending they were super heroes. After a bit they did want to take them off, completely understandable, but did not *need* to.

I'm sure someone, somewhere, is somehow negatively affected by using a mask. In fact, a lot of people. But I don't think that should form the mask policy for the entire population, especially with the benefits we see with their use. "The needs of the many.."

But how can we minimize the issues? For children specifically: better fitting masks, making the idea itself friendly, education on them -- both why they are useful and how to use them -- and making it socially acceptable will go a long ways towards easing a lot of the assumed negatives. 

There will still be issues, but those are the very people we are trying hardest to protect by having the rest of us use masks.

edit because my point is a not comparison judgement as much as "and also"

Edited July 31, 2020 by Moonhawk

[Pen]

15 minutes ago, maize said:

Some people, adults or kids, seem to start breathing shallowly or hyperventilating when they put on a mask; I suspect this is behind some of these observations. We can probably help by explicitly talking kids through the process of learning to breathe in a mask--teach them to take regular, deep breaths for example. Like how we have to teach choir kids not to lock their legs when they are standing and singing.

And we can help kids find masks that are comfortable for them.

 

I was going to try to answer something like that too.

In addition, it would probably be helpful to practice and get used to them bit by bit instead of starting off for a full school day needing to wear a mask all day with no prior practice. 

 

[PeterPan]

My ds' bp at the doctor today was great,in a mask, with ASD2. But we've had to medicate him significantle thanks to coronamess. 

2 minutes ago, Moonhawk said:

on the 1 occasion they had to leave the house and wear a mask, they spent half the time pretending they were super heroes. After a bit they did want to take them off, completely understandable, but did not *need* to.

That's what we've done, getting him in a prefered print, minimizing occasions, etc. and it worked great till we went to the dentist. They were all in 14 layers of white like a stupid nuclear bomb had gone off. We're taking him to a pediatric for the filling so maybe they'll do better. But just that left him stressed about masks and unwilling ti wear them two weeks. 

[Pen]

Btw the Taiwan Made Happy Masks seem to be quite easy for a lot of kids to wear.

And Patrick McKeown Breathing instructions are very helpful IME. 

 

[catz]

Panic attacks during medical procedures are not uncommon.  I've always thought doctors could do better with this.  Adjusting to mask use can be hard.  But normalizing and talking a child through it and taking special care with those with anxiety will help.   This sounds like a panic attack to me.  I've had a similar response just sitting in a dentist chair.  If this kids are cardio patients, they may have special concerns.

My teens have hardly been anywhere in months and when they need to mask now, they are still adjusting/whining a little.  

[MEmama]

ETA I have nothing nice to say. 

Edited July 31, 2020 by MEmama

[Pen]

10 minutes ago, square_25 said:

I'd be curious if they published a study. I do wonder whether this is anxiety or an actual physical reaction. I haven't noticed anything weird when my kids wear masks, but it's certainly possible. I'd want data. 

 

If you have a bp cuff you can check your own kids.  You can also check their pulse rate.

I know you love published studies. But surely in this case the actual situation with your own children would have validity for your own children.   And it is very easy and not very expensive to check. Pulse rate is free to check if you have a watch or timer. 

 

(And I would find your personal result worth knowing.)

Edited July 31, 2020 by Pen

[Pen]

3 minutes ago, square_25 said:

Oh, I'm not worried about my kids. I'd be curious if it happens for the kids being described. 

 

ah. 

[historically accurate]

Since we're discussing anecdotes:

My dd has tachycardia on any given day. She has no problem wearing a mask for upwards of a couple of hours at a time; we've done many doctor appointments during June and July. Her heart rate isn't any more messed up than it is on any other random day. Her heart rate is way worse when she first gets up in the morning than it is wearing a mask at a doctor's appointment.

We check it a couple times daily with a BP cuff and our pulse oximeter and just counting and timing.  

[Ali in OR]

Well, here we haven't done a good enough job of keeping our numbers down so our kids won't be in school, masked or otherwise. No one needs to wear a mask at home, and that's where our kids will be. Now, maybe if adults had done a better job at masking and social distancing this would be a point of discussion.

Sorry. I'm a bit cranky because our state now has metrics for when schools can open (<5% state positivity rate, <5% county positivity rate, <10 per 100k total cases in county FOR 3 WEEKS RUNNING). I spent the morning digging up the data and there is not one point this summer when we could have opened schools, and I don't think it's going to get better so I think we're home for the year.

[maize]

I learned recently that there is a gene that makes some people more prone to panic attacks when the CO2 concentration in the air they are breathing becomes elevated. I could see wearing a mask combined with shallow breathing leading to elevated enough CO2 levels in people with this gene to trigger a panic attack. I have one friend who gets panic attacks when wearing a mask and whose child hyperventilated and passed out in a mask, I suspect there may be something genetic at play in her family. I know a number of other people who had a hard time at first but worked on learning to breathe more naturally and can now wear masks without trouble.

Face shields seem to be a reasonable compromise for some people who legitimately struggle with wearing a mask. 

 

Edited July 31, 2020 by maize

[kokotg]

Goodness, I hope not: if we don't even have wearing masks as a way to slow down spread, it will be even longer before we can get back to any version of normal. But I would expect if this were a widespread problem, we'd have evidence of it by now from countries where wearing masks has long been a cultural norm. 

[kbutton]

36 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

My ds' bp at the doctor today was great,in a mask, with ASD2. But we've had to medicate him significantle thanks to coronamess. 

That's what we've done, getting him in a prefered print, minimizing occasions, etc. and it worked great till we went to the dentist. They were all in 14 layers of white like a stupid nuclear bomb had gone off. We're taking him to a pediatric for the filling so maybe they'll do better. But just that left him stressed about masks and unwilling ti wear them two weeks. 

How did someone else being layered up bother him? Our dentist's office was layered up, but it wasn't like it was that different from normal--they always wear a mask and face shield or mask and goggles. They just changed the kind of mask, and they added a gown. 

[Moonhawk]

1 hour ago, StaceyinLA said:

...

I just think this is interesting to note with schools planning to open and have kids wearing masks all day. Do we really have any clue what the effects of this will be on our children?

To directly answer your actual question:

I think the general effect we are hypothesizing is that they are kept healthier and free from coronavirus as much as possible.

A reminder, we do not know the long term effects of coronoavirus on our children, either.

Edited July 31, 2020 by Moonhawk

[NataliaMusk]

I'm so tired of people coming with 17923 reasons not to wear a mask. Someone literally told me that's "unhealthy to breathe your own carbon dioxide" the other day when I took my child (we were both wearing masks) to his doctor appointment... Tell that to doctors that wear those masks 12+ hours a day lol How do people come up with this stuff is beyond me lol I have no patience anymore. If you and/or your child can't wear a mask for whatever reason (breathing problems, disabilities or things like autism, believing in bullshit science you read on facebook) then just don't leave your house. It's that simple. Some countries have that as actual law, you get fined if you don't do it. That's the only way to stop the virus.

And these people love to say "Oh but if your mask protects you so much why are you worried about me not wearing one?" Maybe it's because the virus will keep spreading between all those not wearing masks? Come on people lol

[NataliaMusk]

15 minutes ago, Moonhawk said:

To directly answer your actual question:

I think the general effect we are hypothesizing is that they are kept healthier and free from coronavirus as much as possible.

A reminder, we do not know the long term effects of coronoavirus on our children, either.

We have actual factual evidence of the damage covid can cause to our lungs but people are more worried about "what ifs" with masks. 

[rebcoola]

Since we are doing anecdotes.  DD 11 was hospitalized in may with pneomonia.  She had to wear a mask until she was set up in a private room.  So she spent about 10 hours, from the time she was brought to COVID symptom urgent care to when she was in own room in the hospital.   She was fine the whole time with her mask on and no none of her, terrible numbers, improved when she got to take the mask off. 

[EmilyGF]

2 hours ago, maize said:

Some people, adults or kids, seem to start breathing shallowly or hyperventilating when they put on a mask; I suspect this is behind some of these observations. We can probably help by explicitly talking kids through the process of learning to breathe in a mask--teach them to take regular, deep breaths for example. Like how we have to teach choir kids not to lock their legs when they are standing and singing.

And we can help kids find masks that are comfortable for them.

Our friend got into a small car accident after wearing her mask out to Costco for the first time. She ran into her neighbor's fence.

However, she is a doctor and has a long history of wearing masks without problem.

She said, "If I didn't have that history, I would think it was due to the mask. Really, shopping in a socially distanced way is super stressful. It makes total sense that many of the public think they can't wear masks."

[Jean in Newcastle]

And yet Asian children have masked for decades with no ill effect. 
 

covid19 itself has been known to cause heart and lung problems. 

[EmilyGF]

32 minutes ago, kand said:

But you know that will be passed along as “I know someone who got in a car accident because they were wearing a mask for the first time” without the other information. 

I appreciated her compassion. She spent years working with underserved groups and has an ability to be considerate that I highly respect. Also, it helped me understand others, too.

[Wheres Toto]

My 13 year old with ADHD and anxiety went back to Tai Kwan Do this week, everyone distanced and wearing masks.  She also has asthma.    We've been treating masks as necessary but she personally hasn't had to wear one often.  Basically only when she had to go to the ER one day (and she wore it for 4 hours that day).   I told her about the olympic athlete that wore it during his race because of allergies.   And the people who wear masks to avoid germs and pollutants due to asthma.  I told her to make sure she takes deep breaths.   And she was fine.  As was every other kid in her TKD group, some wearing cloth masks, some wearing ear loop/surgical masks and some wearing N95s.  

I think a lot of how kids react is going to be in how the parents and other adults in their lives react.  

And CO2 and O2 molecules are much much MUCH smaller than viral particles, so the whole CO2 can't escape but virus can get in is a load of bullshit.  

[PeterPan]

3 hours ago, kbutton said:

How did someone else being layered up bother him? Our dentist's office was layered up, but it wasn't like it was that different from normal--they always wear a mask and face shield or mask and goggles. They just changed the kind of mask, and they added a gown. 

Our place has never looked like that. They had on white wraps over their clothing, THREE layers on their faces. It was scary, acting like we were radioactive. Scared and surprised me enough I don't want to go to my appt. And was a different (nutty, eccentric, not very personal) hygeinist and a new dentist.

Have you seriously never seen Silkwood (was that the name?) where they're all gowned and scrubbing her? That's what it was like. It was crazy.

[PeterPan]

5 minutes ago, Dotwithaperiod said:

the latter possibly could be exempted

Nope. Private businesses can refuse entrance anyway and are. And autism schools are requiring them. For me, I can tolerate only short amounts of time before I have to take a break. In other words, even though people or kids have labels and could, they aren't using exemptions for any variety of reasons.

My ds wore his mask 40 minutes today and he's pretty much shot. Can't imagne if he were in school.

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

And yet Asian children have masked for decades with no ill effect. 

Wow and it's stuff like this that the anti maskers DIDN'T WANT. Decades of masks.

[kbutton]

5 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

Our place has never looked like that. They had on white wraps over their clothing, THREE layers on their faces. It was scary, acting like we were radioactive. Scared and surprised me enough I don't want to go to my appt. And was a different (nutty, eccentric, not very personal) hygeinist and a new dentist.

Have you seriously never seen Silkwood (was that the name?) where they're all gowned and scrubbing her? That's what it was like. It was crazy.

I have no idea what Silkwood is.

Maybe I'm immune to gowning up from all the Call the Midwife I watch, lol! The dentist was definitely not as gowned up as DH sometimes has to be at work.

[PeterPan]

Just now, kbutton said:

I have no idea what Silkwood is.

Maybe I'm immune to gowning up from all the Call the Midwife I watch, lol! The dentist was definitely not as gowned up as DH sometimes has to be at work.

Ok think Monk in that scene in the supercondoctor factory, Was that it? All in white, head to toe. Even their hair, I kid you not. 

[Jean in Newcastle]

Just now, PeterPan said:

Wow and it's stuff like this that the anti maskers DIDN'T WANT. Decades of masks.

?  I was stating a fact. 
 

Whether we need decades of masks depends on if we can eradicate or mitigate a novel contagious illness. Not masking makes that goal harder to achieve. 

[PeterPan]

2 minutes ago, kbutton said:

Silkwood

It's a Sally Fields movie. I must have the name wrong. Maybe Norma Rae? She's a union organizer, gets exposed to radiation and scrubbed. Surely I'm mixing plots??? 80s movies lol

[Terabith]

My husband was a health physicist in the Air Force.  He's one of those people who was trained to clean up after nuclear disasters.  For what it's worth, if you're exposed to radiation, you have to get naked to get scrubbed.  

[klmama]

17 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

It's a Sally Fields movie. I must have the name wrong. Maybe Norma Rae? She's a union organizer, gets exposed to radiation and scrubbed. Surely I'm mixing plots??? 80s movies lol

You're thinking of Meryl Streep in Silkwood. She worked in a nuclear facility and exposed problems there, was exposed to radiation, and scrubbed.   

[katilac]

 

5 hours ago, StaceyinLA said:

I’m not trying to be controversial, and am not going to get back on here and argue at all regarding any of this.  

Welp, not much of a discussion then. I don't find that all medical professionals are immune from drama and anecdotes, so I'll just say this doesn't mean much to me and leave it at that. 

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

Our place has never looked like that. They had on white wraps over their clothing, THREE layers on their faces. It was scary, acting like we were radioactive. Scared and surprised me enough I don't want to go to my appt. And was a different (nutty, eccentric, not very personal) hygeinist and a new dentist.

I can see where a child might be wary or even scared if they weren't prepared to expect it, but why would you be surprised and scared? It's just PPE, I would certainly not be surprised to see a medical professional in full PPE at this time. It's a dentist's office; they are literally working in people's wide open mouths all day long. I'd want three layers of protection, too! It's not something to take personally. Being radioactive isn't a personality flaw in any case, lol, it's just another safety issue. 

[Shoeless]

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

It's a Sally Fields movie. I must have the name wrong. Maybe Norma Rae? She's a union organizer, gets exposed to radiation and scrubbed. Surely I'm mixing plots??? 80s movies lol

Silkwood was Meryl Streep

[BusyMom5]

5 hours ago, maize said:

I learned recently that there is a gene that makes some people more prone to panic attacks when the CO2 concentration in the air they are breathing becomes elevated. I could see wearing a mask combined with shallow breathing leading to elevated enough CO2 levels in people with this gene to trigger a panic attack. I have one friend who gets panic attacks when wearing a mask and whose child hyperventilated and passed out in a mask, I suspect there may be something genetic at play in her family. I know a number of other people who had a hard time at first but worked on learning to breathe more naturally and can now wear masks without trouble.

Face shields seem to be a reasonable compromise for some people who legitimately struggle with wearing a mask. 

 

 

Do you have any more info on this?  My DH will get sick feeling and drowsy if we have the recirculator on in the car- he needs the fresh air.  As long as we do, he doesnt get sick or drowsy.  Its weird- and we have done many experiments!  

 

[wathe]

7 hours ago, StaceyinLA said:

I’m not trying to be controversial, and am not going to get back on here and argue at all regarding any of this. It’s just for informational purposes, and obviously comes from a single person’s experiences, but this came up today and I found it interesting enough to share. Obviously there is no possible way to have long-tern studies at this point regarding effects of mask use period, much less in children, so I thought this was worth mentioning here.

My dd’s father-in-law is a pediatrician, and her mother-in-law does ultrasounds for a pediatric cardiologist. We were talking a bit ago and Covid came up. She was saying they have been swamped with patients in for ultrasounds due to elevated heart rates, BP increases, etc. She also said that she has been noticing many kids having extremely elevated heart rates when getting their ultrasounds, as in 160+ bpm (and not little kids - 11-12 yo kids). She has had them remove their masks, and within a couple minutes, their heart rates drop considerably.

Obviously she is one person at one pediatric cardiologists’ office, but she is very concerned at what all of this, not just masks, is doing to children. She said the anxiety levels from everything that is going on, coupled with them wearing masks, and being anxious about wearing the masks, is absolutely affecting the overall health and well-being of a lot of the kids they are seeing.

I just think this is interesting to note with schools planning to open and have kids wearing masks all day. Do we really have any clue what the effects of this will be on our children?

1) If the reason the patient has been sent for US is to investigate tachycardia, then not surprising to find that the heart rate is high during the US appointment.  Also, tachycardia and elevated blood pressure are not uncommon at the beginning of a medical visit (triage heart rates and BP's are often a little high), and heart rate and BP usually normalize as the patient settles in to the environment.  We see this pattern all the time in emerg.  I think it's unlikely to be a physiological result just of wearing a mask.

2) I don't think there is any doubt that the COVID crisis has caused an increase in general worry and anxiety for just about everyone, children included, and that increased heart rate and palpitations can be a symptom of anxiety.   I think the bulk of the anxiety we are seeing is related to the crisis in general, not specifically to linked masking.  Masking itself is part of the solution to the crisis.  (Though, the politicization of universal masking in USA isn't helping.  Masks have, in a bad way,  become a political symbol of the crisis). Most kids will habituate to wearing a mask without any issues, particularly if adults treat them as a matter of course and model good habits, without drama.

3) We do have a very good idea of what the effects of masking will be:  better control of a serious pandemic.  And that can only be good.   (Many kids in Asian countries have been masking for ages.  They are fine)

Personal anecdotes:  1) My kids mask for (rare) outings, and for day-long visits with grandparents.  They have worn cloth masks for hours at a time.  I've checked them with my pulse-ox:  normal heart rate, normal O2 saturation.  They are fine. 2) I work in a community emergency department.  We see a lot of kids.  All children above the age of 2 are required to mask (with certain very rare exceptions).  They all get a full set of vitals at least twice.  I have not seen anything to suggest any kind of detrimental physiological or psychological consequence of masking. (Universal masking is relatively uncontroversial here, and well modeled by politicians of all parties.  I am sure that helps)

ETA I'm in Canada

 

 

Edited August 1, 2020 by wathe

[Wheres Toto]

6 hours ago, wathe said:

1) If the reason the patient has been sent for US is to investigate tachycardia, then not surprising to find that the heart rate is high during the US appointment.  Also, tachycardia and elevated blood pressure are not uncommon at the beginning of a medical visit (triage heart rates and BP's are often a little high), and heart rate and BP usually normalize as the patient settles in to the environment.  We see this pattern all the time in emerg.  I think it's unlikely to be a physiological result just of wearing a mask.

 

Isn't this called "white coat hypertension" or something like that?

[teachermom2834]

I just had the conversation with my 12 yo dd yesterday about parental attitudes influencing kids towards masks. She mentioned that two girls she is in a dance class with (I have felt pretty safe about this-it is just the three girls and the teacher spread out and masked) do not seem to take the mask wearing and distancing seriously. They also complain the entire class about the mask. It’s bugging my daughter who just wears her mask, as the teacher requested, and moves on with life. She doesn’t like it but she wants to dance. 
I pointed out to her that their moms refuse to wear masks in the lobby area. I didn’t tell her that the two moms whisper about me and mock me for wearing the mask. 
 

I’m just ranting now but I will say that I‘ve been thinking and noticing a lot that bad parental attitudes are influencing the kids and really just making it harder for the kids to deal with the masks. Whatever the parents feel about masks if they have their kids in a situation masks are required the parents need to put on their brave face and positive attitude and find their kids the comfiest cutest mask they can and make the best of it. Because the kid is going to suffer if they can’t get used to the mask and just participate and learn in whatever activity they are in. If you are truly anti mask I can respect that but just stay home. Don’t poison every situation you are in for your kids with your negativity. 
 

 

[Ausmumof3]

42 minutes ago, Where's Toto? said:

Isn't this called "white coat hypertension" or something like that?

I have a story about that.  When I was having my first baby I had my second to final appointment with someone who wasn’t my obstetrician.  I’m quite nervous with doctors I don’t know well.  Also was a male and I just didn’t feel comfortable rightly or wrongly.  Anyway my blood pressure was a “keep watch on” for that one appointment only.  My normal lady was back the next time and everything was fine.

[PeterPan]

8 hours ago, wathe said:

I have not seen anything to suggest any kind of detrimental physiological or psychological consequence of masking.

Just so you realize you wouldn't see the consequences for people on the spectrum necessarily in your ER or whatever. The meltdowns and refusals will be later, once they get home. SPARK is trying to gather data on covid in autism and how things are affecting people.

[Innisfree]

11 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

Just so you realize you wouldn't see the consequences for people on the spectrum necessarily in your ER or whatever. The meltdowns and refusals will be later, once they get home. 

I've got a child on the spectrum, too, and so I know this can be true. The behavioral reaction typically does come later, in the safety of home.

All the more reason, then, to make wearing masks a safe, familiar, normal part of a child's life. I know @PeterPan is really thoughtful and intentional about how she works with her son, so this is not aimed at her, just a general comment.

Honestly, the parental anxiety about wearing masks makes things so much harder for kids. Same goes for practitioners in PPE. This is going to be normal life for a while, so we might as well settle in and treat it as normal.

 

[PeterPan]

9 minutes ago, Innisfree said:

Same goes for practitioners in PPE. This is going to be normal life for a while, so we might as well settle in and treat it as normal.

I wish they had told me ahead, so I could have prepped him. I think these professionals are dealing with their own anxieties and have no clue what we're dealing with. Also the hygienist so did not help. She didn't up her enthusiasm or anything to cover. Basically her anxiety and issues, normally tolerable, became glaring.

I see this with ds' teletherapies too. They have to work hard to leave it behind and come in with their positive A game. Some weeks they have a really hard time.

I think I'll call and make sure I' not with the dead fish hygienist for my appt.

[PeterPan]

14 minutes ago, Innisfree said:

Honestly, the parental anxiety about wearing masks makes things so much harder for kids.

I would rephrase that: when parents and kids have anxiety (a chemical, physical, diagnoseable issue), it makes wearing masks harder. I'm not sure what is so confusing about this. I started meds, think positively, took steps to ensure fit/comfort, and have a personality that matches my blood type. I ust happen to have a body and chemistry that makes it harder. After 30-40 minutes I'm having to breath deeply and use strategies not to bolt out of the room. It's not for lack of WANTING to comply with the law. And if my ds wears a mask somewhere and then needs time to recover mentally, that doesn't mean I failed him or didn't try hard enough.

I mean, first we weren't allowed to have opinions, now not FEELINGS??? If I feel stressed and need a break it's because I didn't try hard enough???

So yes, I think the whole community should conclude that just because it's a nothing for them that it's not an issue for anyone if they ust suck up.

[PeterPan]

Just now, Danae said:

All of the providers we’ve seen since this started have had a “what to expect at your visit” section on their websites that includes that info.  It seems like a small courtesy to provide that so people aren’t surprised. 

I was told something by phone, and even that they kept glossing. I think they got in their bubble. And frankly, there were no words they could have used that would have prepared me for how it looked. The dead pan hygienist made it worse. My regular hygienist came by and she bubbled so much you focused on her, not the garb.

[Guest]

I have really, really been trying to prep my students for what they are going to see when they come back to the studio and that it can't be exactly like it was in Feb-that we will have masks, that if I have to pull in close to them, I'll have a face shield as well, that we'll be doing more things separated and they will have to handle their own materials, etc. They're relatively minor changes, especially compared to doing everything via Zoom for the last few months, but they are changes.

It took me almost 2 months to actually feel like I could bring my A game and just teach online, and I suspect it is going to take me almost as long to readjust to teaching in person with the changes as it did to adjust to teaching online, especially with the anxiety about possible infection, having to quarantine if I get exposed, etc.  I know some of my families are staying online in part BECAUSE they want to minimize too many changes for their kids at once, and I understand that perfectly.

[PeterPan]

4 minutes ago, dmmetler said:

to actually feel like I could bring my A game

I love this. It makes a huge difference.

The more I think about it, the more I'm thinking this was our problem. I'm going to make sure my appt is with the more upbeat hygienist.

Edited August 1, 2020 by PeterPan

[Ausmumof3]

13 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

I would rephrase that: when parents and kids have anxiety (a chemical, physical, diagnoseable issue), it makes wearing masks harder. I'm not sure what is so confusing about this. I started meds, think positively, took steps to ensure fit/comfort, and have a personality that matches my blood type. I ust happen to have a body and chemistry that makes it harder. After 30-40 minutes I'm having to breath deeply and use strategies not to bolt out of the room. It's not for lack of WANTING to comply with the law. And if my ds wears a mask somewhere and then needs time to recover mentally, that doesn't mean I failed him or didn't try hard enough.

I mean, first we weren't allowed to have opinions, now not FEELINGS??? If I feel stressed and need a break it's because I didn't try hard enough???

So yes, I think the whole community should conclude that just because it's a nothing for them that it's not an issue for anyone if they ust suck up.

I think there are people who genuinely do feel super uncomfortable in them and I totally get that.  I think there are some people though that are really kind of dramatising it a bit.  I think you can’t do much about the former but you can about the latter as a parent.

i do think overall it’s worth acknowledging that for a lot of people it’s a huge and not really pleasant change.  We need people to kind of be a bit heroic and deal with the hard stuff.  
 

one thing I’m hearing recently is that we talked about IQ and we talk about emotional intelligence but we need to talk about CQ - change quotient - people’s ability to deal with and adapt to changing circumstances is being seriously put to the test.  I’m probably explaining it wrong but it made sense to me.

[Guest]

1 minute ago, PeterPan said:

I love this. It makes a huge difference.

The more I think about it, the more I'm thinking this was our problem. I'm going to make sure my appt is with the more upbeat hygienist.

One thing I realized with online,  and I am expecting it to be as much if not more the case with masks, is that I have to be MORE cheery and upbeat and animated than I do in person normally, because the emotions don't come through as well. There are a lot of times that I feel kind of like I'm hosting Blue's Clues or something :). I've always had an aversion to "preschool praise"-the overly animated, cheery, praising everything enthusiastically, like in a Dora the Explorer episode. But, for many of my students online, and I suspect with masks, that is what they need. And, to be honest, it is also kind of a fake it until you make it situation. If I'm anxious and I don't want the kids to feed off of that, I need to push it, and pushing the enthusiasm "Come on, let me hear it one more time! You got the G!-great job" helps me, too.

 

[debinindy]

2 hours ago, Indigo Blue said:

The OP just wanted to have a discussion about an observation some doctors made. Some replies are a bit too harsh, IMO.

 

Becoming the pretty typical MO for this board.  

[historically accurate]

2 hours ago, Indigo Blue said:

The OP just wanted to have a discussion about an observation some doctors made. Some replies are a bit too harsh, IMO.

She actually stated in the original post that she didn't want to have a discussion - she simply wanted to drop it and leave. So, we are free to discuss among ourselves.