Written and published on 21 June 2020

• I FOUND PAPER MASKS CAUSED ME TO COUGH SPORADICALLY
• I FOUND COTTON FABRIC FACE MASKS CAUSED MY LUNGS TO PRODUCE PHLEGM (MUCUS)

Image: “These are the face masks often used to prevent the spread of Coronavirus. They are used in countries with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreaks and are worn in hospitals as well as in public. They are not designed to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne bacteria or virus particles and are less effective than respirators, such as N95 or FFP masks,” by Nurse Together, in English Wikipedia … https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surgical_mask#/media/File:Surgical_face_mask.jpg … CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: “These are the face masks often used to prevent the spread of Coronavirus. They are used in countries with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreaks and are worn in hospitals as well as in public. They are not designed to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne bacteria or virus particles and are less effective than respirators, such as N95 or FFP masks,” by Nurse Together, in English Wikipedia … https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surgical_mask#/media/File:Surgical_face_mask.jpg … CC BY-SA 4.0

Dear Ones,

As people in Los Angeles are required to wear face masks in public because of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have been testing various masks while out and about town, and have found that I am experiencing COVID-like symptoms while wearing a face mask and shortly thereafter.

I FOUND PAPER MASKS CAUSED ME TO COUGH SPORADICALLY

In my own experience, I found when I wear the type of paper mask that is rectangular with folds I would cough sporadically. This I find an embarrassment when in a store, and also a concern, as a cough can result in expulsion from a store through the owners’ fear that I might have COVID.

Here is the type of mask I found caused me to cough sporadically when I wore it …

Image: Blue, rectangular, horizontally folded paper face mask … https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61UYv03DuAL._AC_SL1200_.jpg …

I refer here to the style of paper mask and not the specific brand of mask in the image, as I have only tested one brand so far.

I FOUND COTTON FABRIC FACE MASKS CAUSED MY LUNGS TO PRODUCE PHLEGM (MUCUS)

I have more to report regarding the cotton fabric face masks sold online. I have tried two kinds so far, each with two layers of fabric; one had horizontal pleats and the other did not …

Images of cotton fabric face masks … https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61zt1-WgSbL._SL1200_.jpg  … and …  https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81uF0e2Oa7L._AC_SL1500_.jpg ..

For me, these did not cause coughing, but they did cause production of thick, clear phlegm (mucus) that came up my windpipe and which I then needed to swallow. The phlegm production would start shortly after I donned the fabric masks, and would continue for some while after I took the fabric masks off.

I realize experiencing these symptoms while wearing paper or cloth masks, or for a while after taking them off, may cause concerns that the symptoms are caused by the coronavirus. In my case, though, I can vouch for the fact that both the coughing and the production of clear phlegm apparently have to do with wearing the masks.

I hope my experience in this regard will be reassuring to others. I feel one way to ascertain the cause might be to notice whether the symptoms only occur during and shortly after mask use. That is just my hunch; of course the thing to do, to be on the safe side regarding COVID-like symptoms is to seek competent medical advice.

I could conjecture that the paper masks might have tiny bits of paper in them that might be inhaled into the windpipe and might cause a tickle that triggers a cough. I might also guess that the effort of breathing through a fabric mask might make heat build up in the lungs, causing the phlegm normally within them to become more liquid and consequently to flow upward more freely. These, though, would be but conjecture, and hardly worth the telling.

In love, light and joy,
I Am of the Stars

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COVID-19, coronavirus, health, community health, COVID symptoms, coughing, phlegm production, mucus production, lungs, face masks, masks, California, Los Angeles, United States,