We have spent over a year assessing the risk of nearly every situation during the pandemic and developed rules and habits to keep ourselves safe.
But with over 150 million Americans having received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and the CDC now advising fully vaccinated people that it is safe not to wear a mask in most situations, those rules are changing once again.
Many people have said they are having trouble feeling comfortable forgoing a mask, even in situations where experts now say it is safe, like going for a walk.
“I think people are going to be feeling a little better about things much faster coming out of the last days of the pandemic than they were going into it,” said Dr. Steven Thrasher, assistant professor and Chair of Social Justice in Reporting at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
But dropping the habits that have kept us safe is going to be scary for many.
“Vaccinations aren’t visible, other than the process of getting them and the side effects some of them have. So of course there’s a mismatch between a lot of the physical fears that we’ve had and the ways that we’ve protect ourselves and letting go of those physical barriers. It’s going to cause some conflict.”
And people may be overestimating the level of risk in some areas and underestimating risk in others.
“We perceive strangers as more dangerous and think those close to us aren’t going to be a risk, when of course a lot of transmission was happening at home.”
Dr. Thrasher says it is important for people to take the time to come to terms with all of their emotions about the pandemic and what it has cost us.
“More than a half million people have died of COVID, but also people have had loved ones die of other things, and the mourning of not being able to have graduations and weddings and things like that - so it’s a very vulnerable place for people to be in right now.”
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