When textile hurts, shopping for

clothes turns into a hell

A hypersensitivity to chemicals can be disruptive but manageable if you reduce the exposure, say doctors. But for some people finding an appropriate wear, leave alone shopping, can turn into a horror story.

 

Find below heartbreaking revelations:

Dennis, Flagler Beach, US:
I'am sitting here bare butt as I type this. My only pair of pj's that I wear day-in and day-out are unmedable. [Sustainable textile] for me is next to impossible. I'am allergic to latex and any elastic (elastene/lycra), neoprene, glospan, rayon, modal and others, so underwear, socks, pj's and lounge pants are excluded for me.

Connie Rae, US:
I 've got a pair of underwear which took me two years to outgas from pesticides.
I don't shop anymore as my funds run dry and I go to very select second hand shops.

 

Linda, US:
I get a lot of pain from bad clothes, and it feels like I've put on a lead suit that's pulling me underwater, or I get rashes and burning feelings from some contact stuff.
My underwear is held up with 25 year-old safety pins. Clothing is such a nightmare sometimes: so many hidden chemicals.

Connie Rae:
I wear clothes all the time that hurt. I used to have two sets of organic clothing, and bedding, most of that is worn out now and I am not in a financial position to replace it. My family and friends keep me supplied with underwear and socks, but they wear out really fast and cost more than normal.

Dennis :
The better part of a year i’ve been on a crazy expedition for a pair of jeans. I have major pains on my right side (hip/kidney), so I have to find a pair that does not stink, sit lower on the waist (preventing meeting the area where it hurts) and does not itch. I found one, it was unaffordable.

Judie Squires, Canada:
I only wear hundred per cent cotton or linen against my skin. If it is not organic cotton it goes through a rigorous detoxification of 14 to 30 days on the clothes line and, preferably, in the winter; as I find snow helps to absorb some toxins.

Then  it is soaked in organic vinegar and baking soda for two days in my stainless steel washer with our spring fed well water, which priliminary goes through a whole home carbon filtration. It is then washed in Dr. Bronners liquid soap and rinsed two more times.

Erik Schimek, Hayward, Wisconsin, US:
I purchase undied t-shirts. Boil and wash them twice, then let them rest for two to three months. They're pretty safe for me after that.

Leslie , Asheville, North Carolina, US:
I washed everything by hand for about 5 years. It would make you not want to have too many clothes.
Going to a laundrette would probably be the end of me , as even using someone else's machine who uses natural detergents can make me feel sick.
I use a squeeze of lemon and some warm water- for stains. On my 'glad rags' I use apple cider vinegar or baking soda.

Marsha:

Although raw materials (cotton, hemp, wool, etc) can be organic, the colour fixatives are chemicals and quite toxic.

 

Carys:
I haven't been able to afford organic clothes so I buy basic t-shirts , and only in the summer, as i hang them inside out in the sun (so that they don’t fade)  for about three days. The hotter the weather- the better.

Then I turn them top to bottom and back to front, this seems to outgas most of the stuff, especially, since I leave them outside until there is no noticeable smell.

Then they get washed with 7th gen soap with some added orange oil, a cup of peroxide based (non chlorine) bleach, and a cup of apple cider vinegar, with a long soak cycle. After rinsing, if they still smell, they get another round through the wash, then dried. If they still have any discernable smell to me or my husband, they get hung outside for another couple of days andwashed again.