Whether because of their age or not, some older people tend to be really set in their ways, which means there’s no changing their minds.

This redditor experienced that firsthand when he—a firefighter-paramedic—was called to check upon an elderly man with difficulty breathing. When he arrived, the patient didn’t seem well at all; however, despite his condition, he refused medical assistance, only because he couldn’t bear the sight of someone with a mask. Scroll down for the full story below.

Masks are not currently obligatory, but a person can choose to wear one if they want to

Image credits: Mikhail Nilov / Pexels (not the actual photo)

This paramedic had to deal with a patient cursing him out because he was wearing a mask

Image credits: Mathurin NAPOLY / matnapo / Unsplash (not the actual photo)

Image credits: camilo jimenez / Unsplash (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Zerbo

There was a time masks were mandatory for most people, leaving some of them quite unhappy about it

Image credits: Anna Shvets / Pexels (not the actual photo)

Once obligatory in many countries all over the world, masks are now a personal choice. But even though people are not forced to wear one if they don’t want to, just seeing a person with their face covered can make some individuals go off the deep end, as the redditor’s story shows.

What now arguably feels like a bad dream, the first outbreak of Covid, which eventually led to masks being mandatory for a while, hit the majority of affected countries in early 2020. In April that year, the federal health officials in the US changed their previously unequivocal guidance regarding masks and suggested that all people over the age of two (who are in a public setting, traveling, or around other people in the same household who might be infected) should wear one, the LA Times reports.

Needless to say, not everyone was equally happy about such recommendations. A study on negative attitudes about facemasks during the COVID-19 pandemic found that in Canada and the US, roughly 16% of people chose not to wear them because of such negative attitudes. Said study also pointed out that some people were so set against the idea, it led to anti-mask protest rallies, some of which ended up being violent.

The removal of legal obligations to wear facemasks didn’t result in everyone throwing theirs away

Image credits: August de Richelieu / Pexels (not the actual photo)

Even though masks are no longer mandatory, some people choose to wear them nevertheless. According to a 2024 study, the removal of legal obligations to wear facemasks in the UK resulted in a 25% decrease in wearing them, which means that many people didn’t only do it just because they had to.

While no one’s forcing others to follow such an example, some people feel sour over individuals covering their faces. A poll from 2023 found that while the majority of Americans—73% of them, to be exact—don’t judge people who wear masks in public, 14% admit “thinking less” of those who do. (Roughly 9% say they “think more” of people who choose to wear masks.)

The OP’s patient clearly didn’t think more of people who wore masks. He even refused to be treated by one, even if that meant putting his life in danger. Unfortunately, the redditor wasn’t the only health professional who has had to put up with such difficult patients, as some netizens in the comments said they’ve encountered similar situations, too.

The redditor revealed more details in the comments

Fellow redditors shared their views

Some people have gone through similar situations themselves

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