5 Skin Care Routine Steps that Are Wrecking Your Skin

woman doing her daily skin care routine steps
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You may have once heard that “skin remembers.” And you’ve probably wondered what that means because it sounds like a threat. Or at least something that’s not fun at all. Basically, it means that everything bad that you do to your skin — particularly your daily skin care routine steps, will have its consequences in the end. Well… it seems that it is some kind of threat.

While you may take pride in your daily skin care routine steps, the question is whether you are making some crucial mistakes that you are not aware of. Especially if you notice that you get acne even if you try to properly take care of your skin every day, or practice utmost discipline in your nighttime skin care routine steps. 

Likewise, some daily skin care routine steps that you continuously do can cause a mess on your skin and damage it permanently. You may not be able to see it, but that doesn’t mean that the skin doesn’t feel it.

Here are some skincare habits that are wrecking your skin.

1. Your daily skin care routine steps: Overwashing your face

Regular facial cleansing is very important and should be part of your daily skin care routine steps. Some experts even suggest the double cleansing method. This way you remove impurities and excess sebum from the skin, which, if left on the face for too long, can cause acne and other skin problems.

Even if you use a cleanser that suits your skin, if you are doing it too often, it can become stripping to your skin. This happens because certain ingredients can upset the balance of natural oils in the skin and damage the skin barrier. And this leads to dehydration, redness, flaky skin, and increased sensitivity. Be moderate with washing your face and always use a gentle cleanser. You might also want to read whether you need to wash your face in the morning.

2. Common nighttime skin care routine steps: Layering too many products

We know how tempting it can be to try all these exciting products and pretend to be a skincare professional. However, if you are not an expert, then we suggest that you keep it simple. Using too many skincare products can worsen the condition of the skin, instead of improving it. And you don’t want to be your own enemy.

Keep in mind that some products may cancel out each other’s actions when applied at the same time which is why you should plan out your daily skin care routine steps carefully. It may be tempting to overcompensate for a difficult day by cramming many things in your nighttime skin care routine steps.

Remember that some products work well only at certain pH levels and other products or ingredients can change the pH and affect its action that way. For example, if you combine retinol and lactic acid, this AHA will lower the pH and prevent retinol from being effective, because a higher pH is needed for its action.

And the lack of effect is the least damage in this case. In the worst-case scenario, combining the wrong products in your daily skin care routine steps (or layering too many of them) can lead to clogged pores, sensitivity, chemical burns, etc.

3. Daily skin care routine steps that can cause damage: Using exfoliating scrubs

Although we hope by now that everyone has already removed mechanical scrubs from their daily skin care routine steps (or at least we would like that to be the case), it is still far from reality. To be completely honest, these products do not necessarily have to be bad. But most people use them too often or they are too rough on the skin during their use. 

This leads to disruption of the skin barrier, micro-damage to the skin, and more. We suggest that you replace mechanical peels with chemical ones and use them only a few times a week (most of them should be done along with your nighttime skin care routine steps) so you get the best out of them.

4. Unnecessary skin care routine steps: Using face mists

Although certain face mists may contain moisturizers such as hyaluronic acid and glycerin and therefore be very beneficial for the skin, this is not the case with all of them. But many of the face mists on the market  (which may include the one you are using in your nighttime skin care routine steps)  just contains essential oils and water. Basically, every time you feel the magical smell of flowers and fruits in your face mist, it’s time to put it away… in the trash. Why?

Well, let’s start with the fact that essential oils can be very irritating to the skin, especially if your skin is sensitive. And you can say here: well, yes, but I really like the cooling feeling on the skin after applying the mist. Another red flag! When water starts evaporating from the skin surface, that leads to that wonderful cooling effect. But it also causes water to evaporate from deeper layers of the skin, which can lead to dehydration and other problems. 

We can bet that the facial mist doesn’t seem so magical anymore. We do not want to generalize the story for all products of this type, but to point out to you that it is important to read the composition of the products — especially those that you include in your daily skin care routine steps and choose only those that are good for your skin.

5. Also these nighttime skin care routine steps: Applying essential oils on the skin

Although the essential oils sound mild and gentle, we hope you now understand that this is far from the truth. As we have already mentioned, essential oils can be very irritating to the skin and that is why it is crucial to take care of the products that contain them. Skin reactions depend on the concentration of the essential oil.

For this reason, you should never apply undiluted oil on the skin, especially if the skin is damaged in any way. While you may be enjoying their scents as part of your nighttime skin care routine steps, you might be harming your skin. 

What is also tricky is that the individual reactions and cannot be predicted. Different types of essential oils have different dermal limits and you need to make sure that the dermal limit is being complied with in the dilution process. Otherwise, it can lead to skin sensitization or even chemical burns.

Fine-tune your daily skin care routine steps

Now you know which daily skin care routine steps are not the most desirable if you want healthy, beautiful, and radiant skin. Take extra precaution too, if you’re expecting, and make sure you know all about pregnancy skincare.

Timing always matters, so make sure that you are doing your skin care routine steps in the right order.  For example, it’s good to know when is the right time to apply facial moisturizer. It’s also good to know the techniques for each step, no matter how mundane, like cleaning your belly button

That said, if the items on this list are no longer part of your routine — whether it’s for your daytime or nighttime skin care routine steps, then WELL DONE! If not, you may want to make changes to your skincare regime to ensure that you are not damaging your skin. There’s always room for improvement, even in your daily skin care routine steps