I'm just learning I have long Covid. I live in a senior apartment building and caught it when it was going through the entire building in late January. Most people, even some who knew they'd been diagnosed with Covid, didn't wear masks or self-quarantine, because it was only like a bad cold for them. They ignored all the posted warnings and precautions and sat tigether in areas that were declared closed.

Then I was taken away in an ambulance and hospitalized. After I came home and spent a week in quarantine in my apartment, I was assured I was no longer contagious. But I was also told I could test positive for 90 days, and it was possible, though highly unlikely, that I could relapse but be asymptomatic during that period. So I made the choice to wear a mask for 90 days, in an abundance of caution, to protect my neighbors.

When they ask about my mask, I say I have long Covid and haven't been contagious for months, but I'm wearing a mask anyway for a little longer. They know I was very sick, and *now* they 've acquired respect for Covid -- as soon as they hear the first part, their eyes pop and they step back from me! Then they ask what long Covid is. I tell them it's when you are no longer contagious but still have all the symptoms and it can last a long time. They still back away from me.

Out in public, I don't say anything. It's normal to see immunocompromised older people wearing masks in stores. I'll stop wearing my mask on May 1, and see how my neighbors react when they see I'm still feeling very bad most of the time. I suspect some of the ones who coughed and sneezed and gathered in the common areas without masks will be afraid I'll still be able to give it to them.

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