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The original was posted on /r/tifu by /u/zara_starkerstreber on 2026-02-08 14:27:59+00:00.
TIFU by taking a whiff of smoke coming from super glue on cotton yarn
Title says it all. I was just trying to cut a tail from a crochet project and I know gluing it will prevent unraveling. I had just superglued a few things that were falling apart beforehand on my desk, just absentmindedly while I'm bored working from home.
What was different with the yarn was I noticed a faint white vapor coming off of it. What happened next was pure instinct, no thought. I brought it to my nose and very very briefly took a quick sniff.
I immediately felt a burning stinging sensation in my nose that I have never felt before and it made me jolt back like I got an electric shock. It felt like the most "NOPE I SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE THAT" thing I might have ever done. I started panicking and hyperventilating for a moment but it didn't last long.
I know people sniff glue to get high but I don't think this is one of those. Thankfully the pain and irritation went away after a few moments.
I had to Google it. FYI the active ingredient in super glue is Cyanoacrylate. It polymerizes in contact with water (which is in air and why it will quickly dry in air). Somehow, natural fibers speed up this process and create a lot of heat due to the exothermic reaction. If you get enough of it going it can actually start a fire. Someone said it makes mustard gas and I don't think that is true but all I know now is I will never sniff something suspicious ever again.
TL;DR was bored, saw glue make pretty vapor, smelled it like an idiot, made nose big owie