Apparently We Have All Been Washing Our Faces Wrong & People Are Shook

Stop whatever you’re doing and read this in full, because I can almost guarantee we’re all guilty of this (apparently major) skincare faux pas. Here’s the scoop: BuzzFeed recently sat down with Charlotte Cho — aka the founder of online K-beauty retail giant Soko Glam — to hash out the dos and don’ts of skincare. Now, I’m sure there was talk of the many steps to take to have healthy skin and all that jazz, but the focus of this interview took a turn for the worst (best?) when the beauty expert dropped a huge truth bomb on the world, and we may not be ready to accept this one just yet. So, let me ask you, how do you wash your face? If it’s under a piping hot shower head with steaming water droplets pelting at your pores, you’re doing it entirely all wrong.

Listen, I really hate to be the bearer of bad news here, and I totally understand that millennial women are busy AF. The life of a 20-something hustler doesn't leave much time for lavish self-pampering, let alone enough time to catch up on your favorite Netflix show before bed. And, let's be honest, we don't even get enough sleep as it is, so we'll take convenience wherever we can find it. Aspirations aside, though, we have to put our health first, and on top of eating a healthy, well-balanced diet and squeezing in at least a half hour of exercise per day, skincare needs to be prioritized, too.

Feeling at a loss? You're not alone. Twitter isn't here for any of this sh*t.

I mean, personally, that still counts in my book, but I'm not in any way, shape, or form a skin expert. *Shrugs*

So I'm assuming you're still going to be washing your face in the shower then? OK cool.

#Yep.

I see what you're saying here. Cue Hannah Montana's "Best of Both Worlds."

I think we've all just been told, my dude.

Same.

I promise we'll get through this together, friend.

OK, there's a valid argument here that maybe washing your face in the shower rather than following the so-called "proper" method is just an act of laziness, but the other side of that argument is, why would I step out of the shower, where I wash the rest of my body, to separately wash my face?

Anyone? Bueller?

So, what is the right way to wash your face?

According to Cho, we should be following a regular skincare routine everyday, twice a day, at our bathroom sink. She told BuzzFeed,

Hot water coming straight onto your face from the shower head can strip away your natural oils and leave your skin barrier weak, vulnerable and cracked.

To avoid putting your face directly into piping hot water straight from the shower head, try cleansing your skin at the sink with lukewarm water.

She goes on to explain that, whether you wash your face before or after you shower, the main thing to remember is to make sure you're being gentle with your skin.

OK, that makes sense. I can roll with that.

But if you're still (kind of desperately) looking for a second opinion, you're out of luck.

I am not unlike all of you staring at the screen in shock, annoyance, and maybe even a little shame. The general consensus, though, is that the skin we're in deserves tender love and care, with an emphasis on that tender detail. So say goodbye to cushy, one-and-done washes because, unfortunately, our shower head doesn't do it for us.

To make absolutely sure washing your face in the shower is no longer (or, correction, was never) the way to go, we reached out to a couple of experts for a second opinion.

Angela Jia Kim, founder of Savor Beauty and Savor Spa, tells Elite Daily that the best method is to splash-rinse with water. "Treat your skin like the finest silk," she advises. "No rubbing, [because] the friction will irritate your skin."

And according to Dr. David Lortscher, board-certified dermatologist and co-founder and CEO of Curology, hot water will, indeed, "strip your skin of natural protective oils," while "scrubbing long and hard or using harsh soap" can compromise the skin's protective barrier, giving environmental stressors an open window to irritate your complexion and cause monstrous breakouts.

Personally, I think we've learned a few valuable lessons today — the first being we shouldn't wash our faces with hot water because it can strip the skin of natural oils, and the second being that we should always wash our faces as gently as possible.

In my opinion, both of these practices can be executed in the shower, but I digress.