TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING: WHAT TO DO IF YOU’VE OVER-EXFOLIATED

Exfoliation is a beneficial and crucial process for your skin and its health.

Due to the nature of this process and the different methods that are used to accomplish it, it’s recommended to only exfoliate two or three times a week. 

But what if you’ve over-exfoliated? Read on for some simple tips to help you heal your complexion in no time at all:

WHAT KEEPS SKIN HEALTHY?

The outermost layer of your skin is also known as your skin barrier, and for good reason. It’s your main defense against toxins and pollutants that also helps maintain a healthy complexion. But what makes up the skin barrier?

Think of your skin as being like a brick wall. The cells are bricks and the barrier is the mortar holding it together, made up of lipids and ceramides that naturally keep your skin hydrated and nourished. 

Part of keeping your skin healthy is the process of exfoliation that we mentioned above. This allows you to sweep those dead skin cells away to not only bring out your natural glow with fresh new ones but to keep your barrier functioning properly. 

But, like everything else good in the world, exfoliating is good in moderation, two or three times a week at the most. If you over-exfoliate, you can damage your barrier by stripping skin of its moisture, which can cause plenty of skin issues. 

HOW DO I KNOW IF I’VE OVER-EXFOLIATED?

If you’ve over-exfoliated (chemically or physically), you will most likely be experiencing irritation, dryness, and redness. You may also experience a tingling sensation (or even a bit of stinging) when applying your moisturizer. 

If you have sensitive skin, you may even experience rashes or patches of skin that resemble eczema. This is all because over-exfoliation will strip the skin of nearly all of the moisture and lipids it needs to keep your barrier healthy, increasing the risk of damage and irritation. 

It’s important to find an exfoliator that plays well with your skin.

HOW TO REPAIR YOUR BARRIER

Alright, so, you’ve over-exfoliated. What do you do now? Well, the good news that should bring some relief is that our skin is really amazing at repairing itself with enough time. However, you could do a few things to speed that process up a bit. 

First off - this is an easy one - STOP exfoliating. For now, at least, you need to give your skin a chance to replace the extra cells, moisture, and lipids you lost. Instead, this is the time to focus on providing your skin with ingredients that will heal your barrier. 

Here are three tips to help you repair your skin barrier after over-exfoliating:

1. CLEANSE

Our sulfate-free gel cleanser MOISTURIZING WASH with nutrient-dense chlorophyll, fennel, and seaweed in a PH-balanced formula gently removes daily pollutants without stripping the skin's essential moisture barrier. For heavier makeup removal, try our gentle and velvety MANDARIN MELT CLEANSING BALM. This cleanser was designed with invigorating, nourishing ingredients that moisturize and soothe while dissolving makeup, dirt & spf.

Vitamin E, manuka honey, and sea buckthorn in MANDARIN MELT CLEANSING BALM instantly melt away the day’s buildup without irritating or stripping skin, making it ideal for anyone looking to repair their barrier. 

Note: Washing your face once a day is sufficient, with the best time being at night. Then, in the morning, use a light splash of toner to keep skin's natural microbiome undisturbed. 

2. NOURISH 

Since you lose so many lipids and ceramides with a damaged barrier, replacing them will get your barrier and skin back to normal in no time. Products like our BAKUCHIOL WONDER SERUM were specifically designed to hydrate, lift, and brighten with smoothing bakuchiol, moisturizing hyaluronic acid, and ceramides to hold cells together and keep them healthy, making it perfect for anyone with a damaged barrier

3. MOISTURIZE

When you moisturize, you’re supplying your skin with the oils and water it needs to thrive and keep your barrier healthy. Our first and best-selling product, THE CREAM, is packed with botanical antioxidants, organic phytonutrients, and other beneficial ingredients to boost your barrier every day. 

Soothing jojoba oil, oil-balancing ylang-ylang, skin-regenerating CoQ10, antioxidant-rich green tea - every item in this product was deliberately picked to keep your skin barrier healthy and bring out your dewy, radiant self. 

READY TO EXFOLIATE AGAIN?

Once your skin feels healthy, go ahead and start exfoliating again. It’s important to start slowly to see what works for you, while paying attention to how your skin reacts. You may want to start with once a week before increasing to two or three times a week, but you know your skin better than anyone else, right?

Starting with a chemical exfoliator like glycolic acid and fruit enzymes is a perfect gentle start to melt away dried sebum that builds up in your pores. Our DEEP ENZYME CLEANSE, an influencer favorite of designer Rebecca Minkoff, contains a gentle combination of glycolic acid and pineapple enzymes to lightly exfoliate while promoting collagen production for cellular turnover.  

Then you can add a little physical exfoliation like our BAMBOO REFINING POLISH, made with aspen bark salicylic acid, bamboo, aloe, green tea, rosehip seed, and kaolin clay to softly revitalize skin's appearance, while greatly reducing clogged pores and removing dead skin to bring out your radiant glow!

To learn more about the best products for your skin type, take our SKIN QUIZ. And if you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact us or call us at (727) 286-7684. 

We’d love to hear from you!

XOXO,

Denice