Still afraid of covid: The people who are still isolating and masking

These measures seem like common sense to Pelofsky and Grimaldi. They’re trying to keep themselves and their infant safe, plus they want to protect their elderly parents and do their part to reduce community spread. Not long ago, the couple felt like their precautions were in sync with much of the rest of society. But in recent months their idea of covid common sense has grown painfully out of tune with the view that it’s time to throw caution to the wind and masks in the garbage.

“I didn’t feel draconian before, and I feel draconian now,” says Grimaldi, 36. “Everyone seems to have abandoned the things that were de rigueur before.”

Pelofsky and Grimaldi are among the Americans who are still going very far out of their way to avoid the virus. They don’t dine indoors at restaurants. They continue to practice social distancing. They wear highly protective masks if they must visit a doctor or stop at a pharmacy. Some are home-schooling their kids. Others are refusing to return to the office. They comprise the dozens of social media groups whose members identify as “Still COVIDing.”

Many of them would like the unmasked masses to know this isn’t easy, and that it’s only gotten harder.

“We’ve turned down various parties and events that are indoors because we just don’t feel comfortable doing that yet,” says Pelofsky, 47. “We are a bit cut off from certain friends, unfortunately.” And while none of their guests have balked at their requests, the couple knows it will all get harder in the winter, when it’s less comfortable to socialize outdoors.

They took the threat seriously from the beginning, and have managed to avoid contracting the virus (as far as they know). For a short time, post-vaccination, they loosened their restrictions. But they doubled down after finding out Grimaldi was pregnant last fall, especially as the pregnancy took a toll on Grimaldi’s health. The couple kept up precautions after the baby arrived, not wanting to expose an unvaccinated infant.

But even when the baby gets her second dose of the vaccine next month, Pelofsky and Grimaldi expect to continue masking and taking other measures to mitigate their risk. Grimaldi got a taste of prolonged illness during pregnancy and doesn’t want to return to that state; Pelofsky fears the effects of long covid.

The precautions don’t feel particularly onerous to the couple. What gnaws at them is the sense that they’re out of step with society.

“I feel like an outlier for doing the things that were standard just a short while ago,” says Grimaldi.

There’s no reliable tally of the people who are “Still COVIDing,” but certainly they’re in the minority. A September poll by Monmouth University found that 22…