Confession: We are a family of sensitive skin people.
I’m sensitive to everything, from the sun to the lotions I choose to use… Example: I’d recently decided I was going to start a real, big girl grown up face regimen. {I mean, I’m in my mid thirties, so it’s time to stop using baby wash for my face, right?} See me, panicking when after the first use (and investing in a really nice line) my face experienced a chemical burn and I felt like I was constantly blushing for about five days straight. I was all big surprise, giant eye roll. And It can actually be a really frustrating problem to have when you just never know what’ll trigger it. Jamin, on the other hand, can get crazy rashes out of the blue every now and then from his own issues, and we’re always playing the where-did-that-come-from game. It’s our favorite pastime. Wheeee!
So, as per the law of genetics… our offspring simply didn’t stand a chance. {::Hangs head in complete defeat::} It’s almost comical, the vast array of mystery problems we’ve experienced – The same rules apply with our allergies in general. We’re basically the family that needs masks for public outings in the spring. Booo pollen.
Fun times at the Mills house.
Sad, but true: Most of their pediatrician track records include random visits because of mystery rashes. When they were younger, I was always that mom: frantically googling eradicated diseases, worried over the next suspect pop-up on their skin. Let’s just say I was total worst case scenario panic parent, and our doctor and I were tight the first few years of motherhood. Weird rash from playing on my mom’s grasscloth outdoor rug = me suspecting a flesh eating bacteria I heard about on CNN… The sky was falling, y’all.
Fast forward nine years later: Oh that weird growth thing? It’s just from sitting in the grass. If things don’t clear up, we’ll look into it.
Three kids after a few years will do things to a gal in the realism department.
All sarcasm aside, the fun with sensitive skin {and three little unique sufferers} is that you never know where it came from or what caused it. All remedies, doctor’s visits and scary reactions aside, its almost always different. So it can be hard to figure out those triggers so that it doesn’t happen again.
The best defense is a good offense. So over time, we’ve become big on preventative measures to avoid those weird rash appearances, and all things allergy breakouts.
It’s the best plan of attack for keeping the kiddos well in this arena. And since we found something realistic and awesome, we figured other people out there who may have the same problems… should know about it.
Beyond the mild soaps, baby lotions and searching for natural solutions, we decided it was also best to work on our laundry situation, to eliminate any harsh ingredients that could be triggering some of our issues.
So enter this little saving grace: Did you know that Tide, Downy Liquid, and Bounce Dryer Sheets have joined together to form a Free Regimen Line?
They’re hypoallergenic and contain no dyes or perfumes. It’s a relatable, great-value kinda approach with an easy fix to helping an every day problem. Who has time to stress over every little environmental factor creeping into our lives? It can be exhausting.
One less thing to worry about in the laundry category = Winning in our family’s book.
So we decided to give this line a whirl, to try something different for our family. After the first wash, we noticed a big difference in the softness of their clothes, and the scent of everything. It seemed softer and gentler all around – we were reminded of their newborn baby days when we were really careful with the laundry… but better.
It’s kinda crazy what some fresh change in the laundry can do!
We love this little switch over and the safe option it gives our entire family. We can’t control everything they come into contact with, but it’s a realistic, helpful approach to looking at what we can work with in the every day.
We hope this helps anyone who wasn’t familiar with the options in this line. Do you have a family with sensitive skin? We’d love to hear if you’ve tried it, or any solutions that have worked for you!
Baileywife@ Irishman Acres says
My youngest was born with severe eczema, we switched to This line immediately and LOVE it! I’ve always disliked perfumey soaps anyway…~Kim
ashley @ the handmade home says
So glad it worked for y’all! It’s definitely a relief to find something you can depend on, for sure!
Shelley says
My daughter with sensitive ski has had the best success with AllFree detergent. It doesn’t make her itch like all the others including this Tide Free.
Lori says
We can’t use the Tide line either. Even the “free” as my oldest is allergic to it. We used to use Cheer Free and Clear until I could no longer find it in the stores in my area. We now use Target’s brand Up & Up Free & Clear. Then there’s the subject of floral/herbal (plants, etc) scented soaps and lotions, pollens, burn days, etc. Aaah, a never ending battle.
ashley @ the handmade home says
Sorry it didn’t work – glad you found something that did! It’s definitely different for everyone ;}
sherry guitard says
Both my daughter and myself are sensitive. Not only is my daughters skin sensitive, but she is also allergic to scents. So we have been free since she was born. I switched to bounce free about 3 months ago and love it! A lot of other products that claim to be free still have a lingering scent that caused me to have to dry the rest of the families clothing separate from my daughters, then do hers, with our used dryer sheet.
ashley @ the handmade home says
So glad you guys found something that works!
Brooke says
I’m a huge fan of “free” detergents and have discovered that plant based lines, like Mario Badescu, cause me to break out in a chemical burn like rash.
ashley @ the handmade home says
Interesting… I’ve never even heard of that line!
Rose L. says
I did not know the info about those products! Thanks for the education!
ashley @ the handmade home says
Thanks for stopping by!
Michelle says
We have been using All Free & Clear for years and I am currently using the Bounce Free dryer sheets….Once I bought another brand in a hurry on sale that was scented and as my laundry cycled through, I kept sneezing as my whole downstairs seemed scented…I seem to get more and more sensitive to scents the older I get.