11/28/2025
1. Over-exfoliating with multiple acids
I know it feels satisfying… but AHAs + BHAs layered together destroy your moisture barrier.
🧪 This leads to micro-tears, inflammation, and more breakouts — not clarity.
Keep chemical exfoliation 2–3x/week max, never daily.
2. Using alcohol-based toners to “control oil”
They feel matte for 10 minutes… then your skin rebounds and makes even more sebum.
🥼 Long-term, they trigger dehydration, irritation, and dullness.
Switch to hydrating toners with humectants instead.
3. Spot-treating with toothpaste
Yes, people still do this.
Toothpaste contains detergents and abrasives made for enamel — not skin.
🧯 It causes chemical burns, redness, and PIH (especially on medium–deep skin tones).
Use salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide instead.
4. Sleeping with sunscreen + makeup residue
Sunscreen is great… but not meant to sit on your skin overnight.
🧬 Leaving SPF + makeup on blocks follicles, worsens congestion, and accelerates inflammation.
Double cleanse — ALWAYS.
5. Picking “tiny bumps” or closed-comedones with nails
Everyone thinks: “It’s small, I can do it.”
But nails push bacteria deeper and rupture the follicle from the inside.
🔬 That’s how you get scarring, redness, and weeks of inflammation.
Extractions belong to professionals only.
