Fear Inflation & masks
Dr Gary Sidley, retired NHS consultant clinical psychologist, HART member
Reproduced in full from Gary’s substack with kind permission
The ‘Covid day of reflection’ took place on the 9th of March 2025 to commemorate the victims of the ‘pandemic’. While it is right to honour the memories of those who perished as a result of a pathogen during the 2020-2022 covid event, my focus here will be on a much larger, and often forgotten, group of victims of this era: those who were harmed or killed by the range of unprecedented and non-evidenced responses to a presumed novel virus. In this, the second article in this series, I will highlight the casualties of the fear mongering and mask mandates – (the first article, detailing the numerous victims of lockdowns, can be found here).
Generalised descriptions of the negative consequences of the extraordinary restrictions and practices witnessed during the covid event often fail to impress upon the reader the extent of suffering and turmoil endured by the victims of these draconian interventions. Therefore, I will draw heavily on individual testimonies – from the Scottish Covid Inquiry (SCI) and from other sources – in order to convey the depth of emotional impact of these impositions upon ordinary people.
FEAR INFLATION
The intense campaign of fear mongering during the covid event has been widely documented (for example, see here and here). In the knowledge that a frightened population is typically a compliant one, the government and their public health communication experts bombarded us with a range of scary messages and images. But fear always has consequences, particularly when it is prolonged. Five years ago today, we were in the midst of an extraordinary state-sanctioned campaign of unrelenting fear porn. So on this anniversary …
– Let’s not forget the all those who were harmed as a result of anxiety-fuelled reluctance to seek healthcare for non-covid illness: the sick children whose parents were too scared to take them to hospital; those with deteriorating cancer, stroke or heart problems who never presented for specialist care; and the poor souls who, even after suffering cardiac arrests, did not attend A&E departments.
‘Medical emergencies do not stop in a pandemic … I am afraid that we are seeing a re-run of one of the preventable tragedies of the first wave – people were either too afraid to go to hospital for fear of contracting Covid-19 or were not referred for treatment … The message to patients needs to be clear. If they experience symptoms of a heart attack or acute heart failure, they need to attend hospital. (Professor Chris Gale, researcher at Leeds University).
– Let’s not forget how the fear-fuelled disruption to healthcare across the world may have killed more than a million children under five and tens of thousands of mothers in low and middle-income countries.
– Let’s not forget the swathes of elderly people, and other vulnerable groups, who – because of inflated levels of fear in the general population – were neglected, abandoned and left isolated and depressed.
‘It was felt to many of us that care home residents had been forgotten … and it was because of fear’ ( Dr Donald Mccaskill, Chief Executive of Scottish Care – SCI)
‘For long periods of time, many vulnerable children were not being seen. The usual interactions with universal services and specialist services were effectively suspended or at least reduced’ (Alistair Hogg, Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA) [a national body providing safety for children and young people most at risk] – SCI).
‘The staff in that ward were as petrified as we were. They didn’t know what was happening. There wasn’t proper information coming down to them.’ (Elaine Johnston, Scottish COVID Bereaved, talking about her late brother who was a Type-1 diabetic & who had suffered a stroke in 2017, and who died, aged 57, in February 2021 – SCI).
‘The evidence demonstrated that the Covid response was based on “a knee jerk reaction about just slamming the gates shut” which had the effect of “terrifying people”. Family members doubted whether the authorities ever seriously contemplated the unintended consequences of closing care homes.’ (Simon Crabb, advocate, on behalf of Care Home Relatives Scotland Group [part of the closing statements at the end of Health & Social Care Impacts hearing] – SCI).
– Let’s not forget the huge number of people of all ages who suffered clinical levels of anxiety during the government’s fear messaging campaign, as well as those already suffering severe obsessive-compulsive anxieties (about contamination and health) who were further tormented.
‘People were too scared to come and collect food packs, so food organisations had to pivot to deliver parcels to people.’ (Social Enterprise Scotland [Report of a roundtable meeting, involving representatives from 11 social enterprises] – SCI).
‘People (such as ethnic minority women, or older people) still fear COVID-19, and some still think that it is so prominent that they are going to die.’ (Social Enterprise Scotland [Report of a roundtable meeting, involving representatives from 11 social enterprises] – SCI).
‘My daughter’s [72-years-old] mother-in-law, she’s scared to go out, she’s scared to go the park, even to do food shopping; I can see something’s wrong with her.’ (Hasmik, retail worker, sharing her experiences in 2021).
‘It’s the way people act around each other now. There’s no friendly, social interaction now; everyone stares at you like you’re a leper or something (Ashley, roofer, sharing his experiences in 2021).
‘At times during the pandemic, guidance stated the bride and groom also had to wear masks during the service whilst making their vows.’ (Fraser Sutherland – CEO of the Humanist Society Scotland) – SCI.
– Let’s not forget the suffering of many ‘extremely clinical vulnerable’ people who, presumably because of the intensity of their fears, opted to extend their period of solitary confinement (‘shielding’) long after the Government had advised them not to.
‘Keeping safe from Covid has been tough, especially since the UK ended all its Covid safety measures … I am petrified of catching the virus and what it could do to me. I don’t want to find that out … I want to go out and socialise, but I can’t. The vaccine doesn’t work well for me, so I can’t risk mixing with other people … Shielding has affected my relationship with friends and has made dating new people utterly impossible.’ (Stephen Cooper, a 25-year-old who previously worked in advertising, describing his life two years after the first lockdown).
‘Most of the time I feel terrified to leave the house … I’ve shielded for nearly two years and I’m not going to stop now … I look at the thousands and thousands of cases in London and it makes me scared. They say Omicron is mild but I don’t fancy taking that risk.’. (Debbie Carol, a 68-year-old former college lecturer who has only left her house twice, once for a hospital appointment and once to get married).
‘There is no social life and I have to talk to friends on the phone … If I do meet a friend it is in my back garden, so you have to choose a day with good weather … Once winter hits, our lives become more secluded and isolated … You have your good days but isolation is a very lonely existence … You do feel, with the way society has gone back to normality, you have been forgotten about.’ (Rob Boxall, shielding to protect his wife and daughter, 3-years on from the covid event).
Masks
Despite robust scientific evidence that face coverings constitute an ineffective viral barrier – and are associated with a raft of physical, psychological and social harms – for extended periods during the covid event people were ‘required’ to wear a mask in community settings. The imposition of this irrational and damaging measure was, paradoxically, most evident in health and social care settings.
Five years ago the UK Government and their public health experts had begun a process that would see them flip-flop from an emphatic masks-don’t-work stance to one where wearing of strips of cloth or plastic across the mouth and nose became obligatory, culminating in the first mask mandates in June 2020. So on this anniversary …
– Let’s not forget the swathes of babies and toddlers who failed to bond with their faceless care givers, thereby stunting their longer term cognitive and emotional development.
Children had “limited vocabulary” while some babies had “struggled to respond to basic facial expressions”, partly due to interacting with people wearing face masks. (Amanda Spielman, Oftsed Inspector).
‘We were really really concerned about that [harms from masks] and we fought really hard to have that taken out of the guidance … We know now how many additional support needs there are for children as a result of mask wearing. Speech and language issues have exponentially increased because the children were not seeing the visual cues from their caregivers’. (Lorna Kettles – policy manager at Early Years Scotland) – SCI.
– Let’s not forget the many victims of historical physical and/or sexual abuse who were further traumatised by the mask requirements.
‘11 years ago I was attacked; grabbed from behind by a man holding an arm over my nose and mouth to silence my scream, I was then held at knifepoint for hours on my kitchen floor. This is why I have NEVER worn a mask, it’s too much for me to have my mouth and nose covered in this way … I shouldn’t have to explain this to anyone (I never have) but I almost feel like I have to justify why I won’t and can’t comply with the mask rules.’ (Anonymous female).
‘Mandated mask wearing has caused me numerous problems. I was sexually abused for years as a child where I was smothered and muffled, anything to stop me crying out… So mask wearing has been a trigger for me both wearing and seeing people in masks – particularly children.’ (Anonymous female).
‘I suffer from PTSD as a result of childhood abuse. I have been working on my mental health for years … but I didn’t even consider that wearing a mask would be a problem. At first I was finding myself very anxious not being able to see people’s faces properly … I would feel dizzy and short of breath when wearing a mask. It gradually got worse until I started having flashbacks, very sudden images of my abuser covering my mouth.’ (Charli MacVicar).
– Let’s not forget all the elderly people who will have sustained hip fractures and other injuries from falls caused by mask-induced impairment of peripheral vision.
‘On one particularly fateful visit to the dentist I was using my crutches and stumbled (as I now realise I often did with a mask on as it was so much more difficult to see my feet) and fell against a shop storefront.’ (Anonymous disabled male).
– Let’s not forget the 18 million UK adults with hearing difficulties who – because masks muffled voices and made it impossible to lipread – were plunged into a communication vacuum.
‘The evidence demonstrated that the use of masks caused distress, confusion and considerable difficulties with communication. Residents couldn’t see smiles, had difficulty recognising relatives and those with hearing difficulties couldn’t lip-read or read facial expressions or visual clues.’ Care Home Relatives Scotland (Closing Statement) – SCI.
‘My 88-year-old mother finds it difficult to put on a mask due to a lack of feeling in her fingers. She finds it very difficult to hear what people are saying to her in shops etc when they and she are wearing masks, leading to confusing conversations … As a result, she is losing confidence in going out alone.’ (Anonymous male).
‘My ‘hidden disability’ is now very visible because I have to ask people to repeat themselves as masks muffle their voices and I can no longer lip-read or read faces. Reluctantly I have to declare that I’m deaf. People then tend to raise their voices not realising that volume isn’t the issue – it is the higher frequencies I can’t hear so clarity is lost. I don’t like to ask people to lower their masks.’ (Anonymous female).
– Let’s not forget the patients with existing respiratory problems whose breathing difficulties were exacerbated, those who were put at greater risk of contracting pneumonia and other bacterial infections, and those who were exposed to the inhalation of micro-plastics.
‘I am a 59 years old male, suffered from severe asthma in my 30s but have not used medication for 20 years thanks to a breathing method … Wearing a mask causes me severe difficulty because it pushes me below the acceptable level in terms of intake of air. After a few minutes I feel that I am being asphyxiated, which is extremely stressful.’ (Anonymous male).
‘I have chronic bronchitis and use asthma inhaler on a daily basis … Only time I wore a mask out I collapsed in the supermarket … I use an oxymeter daily on GP advice. If I put a mask on my oxygen levels go down quite rapidly – to around 86% and become very lightheaded…. I was advised to call an ambulance if it went below 90%. Truly ridiculous.’ (Anonymous male).
‘I am asthmatic and have hay fever in the summer months, I am plagued with recurring sinus infections and throat infections which my GP has said is a result of the masks … I have had to increase my inhalers and take my nebuliser more often as my asthma has become much more severe, all due to masks. I have constant headaches and fatigue as a direct result of masks and a colleague who had childhood asthma is now on steroid, preventer inhalers and nebulisers.’ (Anonymous Healthcare Assistant).
– Let’s not forget the millions of distressed and frightened NHS service users and care home residents who, as a consequence of the often stymied relationships resulting from masked protagonists, experienced sub-optimal care.
‘My dad, who is 83, has a rare form of aphasia which means he cannot speak. He was taken to hospital last week … it has been incredibly difficult to understand staff wearing masks, and almost impossible for my dad … this is incredibly frustrating and stressful … I would like to see the politicians making these decisions, based on barely any evidence, visit these wards and observe the pain and suffering the mask mandate is adding.’ (Anonymous).
‘For someone with social anxiety, trying to communicate through a mask is like trying to drive with a blindfold on’ (Olivier, 19-year old college student).
‘Some of the nurses in the unit had accents I found hard to pick up. They were all wearing masks and for my husband, they didn’t have the accents he was used to, he didn’t know the person’. (Diane Montgomery, wife of a dementia sufferer) – SCI.
‘She hated masks…she never saw a member of staff without a mask on for two years …Towards the end of July 2020, I was permitted to have garden visits, but these were difficult for both of us. I had to wear full PPE and sit at least two metres from her. She used to get upset and distressed … that we had to keep a distance from each other. She hated me wearing a mask as she couldn’t even see my face properly.’ Verona Gibson (Mother of a 39-year-old daughter with learning difficulties/mental health problems, residing in a care home) – SCI.
– Let’s not forget the rational minority who, because they opted not to wear a mask, were harassed and abused by others, assaults that – at least on one occasion – led to the death of a young woman.
‘Some years ago I was violently sexually assaulted where I was strangled to unconscious … to have anything covering my neck or face triggers me to feel very vulnerable and unable to breathe … I have had a few incidences throughout the last 15 months of confrontation for not wearing a mask, each time I have found I am less able to stand my ground and panic sets in, with my legs giving way and publicly suffering a panic attack …I feel exposed, vulnerable and afraid to go out anywhere I may be challenged; this is not living. ’ (Anonymous female).
‘I got a lanyard, but it was still a nightmare. I was followed round shops, had nasty comments, challenged regularly – and these things also led to massive anxiety. We live in a rural area where compliance is high and also I look pretty meek and anxious when I’m out so people aren’t scared to have a go, and they do … There was a period where I felt so much hate towards me … that I just couldn’t even face going to shops for food (Anonymous autistic female).
‘For her [12-year-old daughter] the mask mandate has been catastrophic and has curtailed her life and caused deep trauma. When she puts a mask on she hyperventilates – it immediately makes her panic and feel anxious … When the mask mandate started in schools we did manage to get her an exemption … But with the exemption comes discrimination – from the children who call her “selfish” and a “granny killer” or “antivax” – to some of the teachers who have described her as “one of those”.’ (Anonymous mother).
This time five years ago we were being psychologically manipulated with fear-inflating messages – for instance, ‘IF YOU GO OUT YOU CAN SPREAD IT. PEOPLE WILL DIE’ – and the pernicious ‘Look them in the eyes’ campaign was looming on the horizon. Alongside this extraordinary crusade of state-funded propaganda, the pro-mask zealots were becoming increasingly vocal and mandates compelling everyone to wear face coverings (on public transport, in shops and bars, and in healthcare facilities) were only months away. Both excessive fear and the blanket masking requirements resulted in mass casualties. It is therefore timely to remember the multiple victims of these counterproductive public health responses.
