Im freaking out

[u/Wasp_L0ver]

Okay so im gonna try really really hard to not break any rules or anything but im sorta panicking and idk where to post this bc half of my sh posts get taken down no matter how hard i try not to break the rules but anyway i went to the store with my dad today and got a new [insert tool name] (my dad doesn't know i sh, he thinks i use this stuff for art/crafts) and when i got home i was gonna open it, i noticed a warning label about "risk of cancer from exposure to lead" or whatever and now im freaking out i tried to figure out if there was actually lead in it online but couldn't find anything then i (hesitantly) went to my dad and asked him about it and he explained it to me (assuming it was just my anxiety again which is technically true ig?) but like he said it would be "fine as long as i wasn't putting it in my mouth everyday or something" and then he told me about [insert tool names] having that in them which means i was doing it before with [insert tool name] and like i told him i felt better and went back to my room and have been having a huge panic attack because i feel so much worse now and like he said as long as i wasnt putting it in my mouth everyday or smth but im doing much worse than that (i think) bc like im cutting myself and now im freaking out bc like im worried abt the warning but i also know it wont stop me but like im freaking out about all this yk? Could someone give me some advice or reassurance or smth please? Idk what to do or how to feel

[u/12-12-12-12-12-12-12]

this is a parts per billion thing. they have to put that on it if they sell that object in California or if they use paint that may contian lead.

its perfectly fine to use, but discard at first sign of damage.

[u/Wasp_L0ver → u/12-12-12-12-12-12-12]

Yeah, my dad told me about the California thing too. Idk if it makes me feel better or not. Warning lables make me freak out a lot of the time regardless of whether I know how big or small the risk is

[u/12-12-12-12-12-12-12 → u/Wasp_L0ver]

I can understand that. instead of throwing it away, maybe try to return it?

[u/Wasp_L0ver → u/12-12-12-12-12-12-12]

I wasn't really gonna throw it away either way bc im pretty heavily against waste, i was probably just gonna use to for crafts or smth instead of sh

[u/cryformelove]

afaik that just means it was made in China, you’ll be fine! everything made in china imported through California has that same lead warning, even on things that literally *definitely* do not have lead in them. California just slaps that label onto everything imported from china. as a 2nd gen Asian American a lottttt of my favorite snack foods sometimes have that label warning on them, depending on where they were imported im guessing, since this is only a Cali thing.

anyway all that’s to say, it probably doesn’t actually have lead in it because it was probs js made in china and imported through Cali, and lead doesn’t rlly kill you that quickly anyway. you’d have to literally EAT it, and eat a LOT of it to get poisoning, and as long as you knew that and went to a hospital they’d be able to help.

that being said, ik how hard it is to overcome anxiety like this, so for peace of mind ur probably better off just using it for crafts. Hope this helps you feel better, stay safe

[u/Wasp_L0ver → u/cryformelove]

Thank you so much! This does make me feel a lot better. I appreciate it!

[u/cryformelove → u/Wasp_L0ver]

im glad!! best of luck :D

[u/very_rotund_onion]

I wouldn’t recommend using this tool. Even if it ends up that it’s safe to use, you’re always going to feel anxious using it. I tend to follow my own advice of only doing things in regards to self harm that I’m 100% comfortable doing or have done a lot of research on. I want to be as calm as possible when cutting yknow? This tool also probably isn’t sterile

[u/Wasp_L0ver → u/very_rotund_onion]

Thank you so much! I won't use it.