Masks & Shy Teenagers

The use of the masks has helped shy teenagers to socialize because it is like having a new life, so they have been able to obtain better grades.

Since the beginning of 2020, due to Covid-19, mandatory quarantine has had to be done around the world. In addition to that people have to use masks to stop the spread of the virus, also in schools students, teachers, staff and visitors have to use masks in schools to stay protected.

Viviana Andagana, a high school student, had online classes until the middle of the year 2021, when she was able to  return to face-to-face classes she had to use masks and regarding this she said, “It was literally like adjusting to a new lifestyle, but I like it because I don’t have to show my face, just my eyes.“ 

And she also adds, “Wearing masks in addition to keeping us protected from Covid-19 is a great help for shy people like me who normally don’t dare to socialize but with the masks they feel safer when talking,”. The use of masks can help shy people to be more participative in classes and have better grades.” 

Different authors have defined shyness as the tendency to avoid socializing due to the fear and discomfort that an individual feels when interacting with other people for fear of failure, which leads to this not developing freely in situations that involve social interaction.

“Every time I go somewhere and I know I have to socialize, I tell myself, don’t get nervous, it’ll only be a few minutes, but at the moment I’m going to speak, the words just don’t come out of my mouth, and I know that when we no longer have to use the masks I may not feel confident when socializing”, Viviana said about how she will feel when she have to socialize in the future. 

Lack of self-confidence paralyzes you and causes you to not even try to fight for what you want, and ends up locking you in a tiny comfort zone.

Viviana also stated, “Yes, I have been thinking about working on my confidence, so I hope that until the time comes when we stop using masks, I have already been able to overcome the fear of socializing and get out of my comfort zone.“ 

Feeling comfortable in a place can lead to talking to the people around you, even if you are shy which shows a unique approach to how to overcome the painful discomfort of shyness. 

Danae Cardenas, another student who is shy said, “By wearing masks I feel comfortable, especially at school which has been a great help to progress in overcoming my shyness, so this school year my grades have improved. a lot and I have also been able to make some friends.”

Other students think that wearing masks is annoying because wearing them while exercising or any minimal activity causes suffocation, wearing masks for a long time can cause acne and also buying masks for some can be expensive. But that does not change that if we do not use the masks we will be unprotected from catching the virus.

Clearly it can be raised that the use of masks, especially for shy adolescents, has been favorable since it has led them to function socially at school.