By now we all know that it’s very difficult, if not nearly impossible, to get a good fit for your mask or respirator if you have a beard. But there is a way to get a better fit while masking with a beard if you must mask with a beard and shaving the beard isn’t an option; here it is!
As Dr. Mona Gohara, an associate clinical professor of dermatology at Yale School of Medicine, explained to CNN, “Any opening increases the chance that there is a virus that will get to the orifices, which can then obviously give you the disease,” adding that “not being protected adequately with masks and social distancing does increase your risk of coronavirus, if your mask isn’t fitting properly, then you are increasing your risk,” and that “for a mask to have any chance of fitting properly, it needs to be mask to skin, not mask to hair.”
Still, there are numerous reasons that someone with a beard may be unable to remove it, including health (such as skin conditions) and religious reasons.
The method involves the use of a Theraband, which is a large, broad, elastic band, usually used in physical therapy and exercising. You can buy a Theraband on Amazon here (this is not an affiliate link, we make no money off this).
Then you follow the steps laid out in the excellent video tutorial provided by the Clinical Excellence Commission (link below). Basically you center the Theraband on and under your chin, and then bring both sides of the Theraband up and around your jawline to the top of your head, making sure that all of your beard is covered by and contained within the Theraband, and then tie the ends of the Theraband at the top of your head. Then you put on your well-fitting mask over it.
The image below shows the concept, and you can watch the tutorial here.
