17 tweets · March 2020 · 93 likes · 18 retweets · read on Twitter
Can't stop touching your face? This hack makes it easy: Use thread or floss (thin so breaks in a fall) to tether your hands to your belt loops, so they can't easily reach your face. We call them #FacepalmTethers For detailed instructions, read below, or donttouchyourface.guide
People are saying #DontTouchYourFace This behavior is in fact really powerful to prevent the spread of #COVID19 but the reality is that basically nobody can simply *perform* this behavior on command, so it's not useful advice! (& mostly stressful)
It's important, paradoxically, to stay relaxed & playful, rather than stressed and panicked. Both the cone of shame & #FacepalmTethers are kind of funny—and that's a bonus, not a drawback!
But the cone of shame is impractical for many reasons that don't need to be elaborated on. Hence the need for something else! My friend George had a flight to take, and he came up with this solution (I came up with the name!) twitter.com/joyurge/status…
@joyurge: "This a solution I designed to make it easy to avoid touching my face while on a flight this week. I successfully avoided touching my face unintentionally, the whole trip. (I did touch it three times, each after applying hand sanitizer.)"
With the right length, you can maintain a workable range of motion, and when you take your hands out to be able to reach further, there’s nothing to carry or put away—the loops hang right next to your pockets, conveniently located for re-looping your hands when you’re ready.
Even if you prefer a length where you can still (e.g.) bend down your head to adjust your glasses, it still has the powerful effect of making you aware every time you reach for your face. (There's also a webcam system that can do this at your desk 😂)
#FacepalmTethers Step 1: Get some thread or floss If not sure where to find some, ask around your house or pick some up at a nearby convenience store. (Important: to stay safe while walking, ensure it's thin enough to break if you fall & need your hands to catch yourself)
#FacepalmTethers Step 2: Cut the thread Cut the thread to roughly the length of 3 times wrapped around your hand (you might want shorter; might start with this and try tying it a couple times to get the right length).
#FacepalmTethers Step 3: Tie one end around your front belt loop. (Any secure knot will do here. For one that’s easy to untie later, look up Manger Hitch knot)
#FacepalmTethers Step 4: Tie a slip knot at the other end Leave a few inches of slack between the knot and the end of the thread.
#FacepalmTethers Step 5: Slide the knot towards your pants to make the little loop bigger, and insert your wrist through the loop!
Now when you pull your hand towards your face, loop will tighten (if not already), & stop your hand from touching your face! Experiment w lengths to find balance of blocked-access-to-face and functional-range-of-motion that feels workable by just untying & moving the slip-knot.
Repeat steps 2-5 for the other side, and you've got yourself a pair of #FacepalmTethers Now you have a way to make it easy not to touch your face. 😊➖👐
Spread the word about #FacepalmTethers as a simple hack to make no-face-touching easy! Anybody who is still working or taking public transit in an infected city (most of the US) can benefit from this device, which is virtually free and won’t sell out like masks or gloves.
If you know someone taking a plane trip, or who's in one of the above categories, send this to them directly—or even make them a pair yourself if you're in close contact with them (housemates etc). If not, just retweet this thread to make it A Thing™
And again, here's a link to the guide, which is currently not a website but just a google doc at this url. Which is conveniently printable if you want to have your class of students make them or something! donttouchyourface.guide
