I mean, they were never out in Afghanistan. I think we have to confine discussion to the West here, where I assume OP lives.
You could go back to the 19th century in America, but beards were definitely out from the 1920s to 60s. IIRC it was chemical warfare that killed the beard, because they don't fit under a gas mask, and dudes all want to look like a tough guy. After that, the counterculture brought them back for people involved. I'm less clear on post-Cold-War trends.
Yeah, even more than 10 years really - maybe OP was in a coma 😅 or just didn't notice until someone made a comment and then couldn't stop seeing them. Kind of like when you a buy a certain car you suddenly start seeing them everywhere because you're more familiar.