Wearing a face mask is vital right now if we’re to slow the spread of this horrific virus.
For those of us lucky enough to be able to stay at home and work, just spending an hour with a face covering can feel suffocating.
However, for medical professionals working on the front line, they’re not only risking their lives every day while working around the clock to treat those seriously sick during the pandemic but do it all while wearing an uncomfortable face mask all day.
So, when a doctor posted an image of himself holding a newborn baby he’d just delivered pulling his facemask off, thousands reacted with joy at the big grin that was revealed behind the mask.
The image, which immediately went viral, is giving us all hope that a day will come when we don’t need to wear a mask and this pandemic is over.
Dr Samer Cheaib, a gynecologist based in Dubai, in the UAE, wrote: “We all want a sign, are we going to take off the mask soon.”
Dr Cheaib, is holding a screaming newborn baby who is pulling at his mask to reveal a big grin on his face. It may be a sign of hope but it also sums up 2020 perfectly.
The image was snapped at just the right moment and Dr Cheaib’s big smile shows what we’ll all be wearing when masks are no longer necessary.
Masks can not only be restrictive when it comes to breathing and some people have complained of headaches but can also hinder effective communication.
According to a BBC science article the eyes and the mouth are the most informative areas of our face because they’re the most expressive.
As humans we look at the combined movements of these facial features to figure out what people are trying to tell us, with the mouth expressing feelings of happiness.
“Concealing this area can be problematic when wanting to come across as approachable and friendly,” the article says, adding it may explain why some health workers are opting for face coverings with smiley faces on to help ease patient anxiety.
It would explain the joyous reactions that Dr Cheaib’s huge smile holding a newborn baby has attracted.
His post on his Instagram page has attracted almost 50,000 reactions and thousands of comments with many saying it’s the “Best photo 2020” and simply “the best picture.”
Another comment reads, “Probably it is a sign.” Oh, how we hope so.”
With no certainty of when this will all end the baby screaming at the facemask and pulling it off is definitely a symbol of how we’re all feeling right now.
Let’s hope this is a sign of things to come but in the meantime please wear a mask and help protect others, we all need to work together right now.
Please share if you too love this image.
