For all of you wearing masks in places where few people are doing so and getting those uncomfortable looks from those around you for doing so, just know this:
You are not weak for wearing a mask and doing your best to protect yourself and your family. That stigma needs to be crumpled up and thrown away.
Hear me now and hear me loud. You are brave for living your life with certain compromises. You are brave for ignoring the looks of others and standing by your principles. You are brave for not being afraid to stand out in order to do what you feel is right.
One day you won’t feel the need to wear the mask anymore but many people like myself with an underlying condition or who lives with those with underlying conditions will still feel the need to wear them in certain places. Just know when you see someone like me on an airplane, in a doctor’s office or in a hospital and your kid asks you “Why is he wearing a mask?”, you have an opportunity – an opportunity to change the stereotype that masks are for weak people.
With your brief glimpse into what it’s like to be in our world of protecting ourselves from germs, you can address your child’s question by responding with five simple words:
“Because that person is brave.”
#chronicillness
#wearingamask
#beingbrave
#cfwarriorproject
Andy Lipman
#cfwarriorproject