Scratchy school shirts

[PickledLily]

DD is complaining that the material in her her new school shirts is too scratchy and she can't tolerate it. It's cotton or poly cotton, we've tried both. She's always worn cotton polo shirts no problem but now needs to wear 'proper' school shirts.
I think she is feeling too constricted in them too which is causing a meltdown. Are there any brands that are softer than others?

Speak to school. My son cannot tolerate their normal school jumper. For the last two years he has a special ordered one that he says doesn't hurt his skin. I have to pay double for it, which is annoying but it's made such a difference.

I'm not sure about shirts but definitely speak to school about her difficulties with wearing them. Hopefully they will allow her to continue with polo shirts.

My son is the only one in his school with this particular school jumper. It hasn't stopped his struggles with dressing but it's stopped the huge meltdown we had daily getting his old school jumper on which we endured for years before I asked school for an alternative. I just thought we had to get on with it because it's the uniform. I wish I'd have asked them earlier

Might it be worth trying a specialist detergent? Eucalan is recommended for delicate knitted items, like cashmere hand knits - it is a no-rinse fabric softener and it might reduce the scratchiness.

It's a new shirt so it probably does need a wash. Unfortunately a lot of detergents set off her eczema but we can give it a go. Not sure how amenable they will be to her wearing a polo shirt, I know she won't want to wear anything that will make her stand out and be different. Tricky. Might see if we can find a baggier cut to the shirt as the school's shirt is quite fitted, and see if that helps.

Have you tried Sensory Smart?

My son will tolerate a m and s non ironed shirt that is 2 sizes bigger so it’s not tight 😬 he has very very bad skin under a dermatologist…. And exceptionally sensory won’t wear a jumper or tie 🤪 but can cope with those shirts

I looked at sensory smart but couldn't see any open neck shirts. I think we'll need to just try a larger size in the other shirts. Unfortunately the regulation school shirts have lots of seams in them (beautifully cut shirts, but a nightmare if you have sensitive skin).

Eucalan is a very gentle fabric conditioner/softener - I find pure wool very itchy, and it reduces that itchiness a lot. I think it is also gentle for sensitive skin, from what friends have told me. I’m a knitter, which is how I learned about it - knitters who use a lot of pure wool swear by Eucalan.

www.sensorydirect.com/products/sensory-clothing/hug-shirts would these possibly work? DD has some sensory issues with clothes - I have the socks on this page and she loves them. She also likes her PE 'skins' a lot which are similar to these shirts.