This One Skincare Habit Was Ruining My Skin

For years, I treated cleansing like a competition. Foamier meant cleaner. Tighter meant fresher. If my skin didn’t feel squeaky clean, I assumed I hadn’t done enough.

So I double cleansed, sometimes triple cleansed, scrubbed away every trace of oil, and then wondered why my skin always felt tight, dull, and reactive.

When I finally stopped over-cleansing, everything shifted. Not overnight, but noticeably. My skin calmed down, and eventually, it started to glow again.

What over-cleansing really does

I’ve learned that skin doesn’t want to be spotless, it wants to be balanced.

Every time you cleanse too aggressively, you’re not just removing dirt or SPF, you’re also stripping away the lipids and bacteria that protect your skin barrier. That protective layer helps keep moisture in and irritation out. When it’s disrupted, skin gets reactive, dry, and inflamed, which often leads to using even more products to “fix” the problem.

Looking back, the tight, clean feeling I was chasing was really my skin asking me to slow down.

What I changed

I didn’t stop cleansing, I just stopped attacking my skin.

I switched from foaming cleansers to cream or balm formulas that rinse away gently. I only double cleanse on days I wear makeup or heavy SPF, never twice a day. I stopped using hot water and started patting my skin dry instead of rubbing it.

While my skin is still slightly damp, I go straight in with hydration. Nothing complicated. No waiting around for skin to dry completely.

Within a week, the tightness eased. Within a few weeks, my skin felt more even, and I stopped needing heavy creams to compensate for dryness I had created myself.

Why gentler cleansing works

Your skin barrier and microbiome play a big role in inflammation, hydration, and overall skin health. When you cleanse gently, you’re giving that system a chance to do its job instead of constantly repairing damage.

This is one of those areas where less really does more.

What I use now

My routine is intentionally simple.

A balm or oil cleanser on makeup or SPF days. A cream cleanser when my skin feels dry or sensitive. A gentle exfoliant occasionally, not daily.

That’s it. No harsh foams. No stripping toners. No chasing that squeaky-clean feeling.

What I’ve learned

Stopping over-cleansing changed my skin more than adding another serum ever did. I stopped chasing “clean” and started prioritizing balance.

And once I did that, my skin didn’t just look better, it felt better too.

Sometimes the biggest shifts come from doing less, not more.