This TikTok-Famous Derm Swears By Dry Brushing — Are You Making This Common Mistake?

When people pick up new wellness habits, there's often a learning curve. One practice that continues to gain popularity is dry brushing, a simple yet effective way to care for your body and skin below the neck.

"I am very pro dry brush. There are a few reasons why I like it," she told me over an episode of Clean Beauty School. "The first is that it boosts circulation and stimulates the skin, as you start off at the feet and brush toward your heart. So many tips from my mother have to do with circulation. The second is that you're paying attention to parts of your body that you might not normally pay attention to regularly. We don't really touch our skin–and doing so can be an excellent form of self-care. It's important to acknowledge your skin. It can be very nurturing and healthy."

I won't go over the step-by-step order for dry brushing, but I will say the general overview of how it fits into your routine is as follows: Use your brush on dry skin, shower as normal, and hydrate on damp skin. Post-wash of any kind, it's essential to seal the epidermis with a hydrator in order to trap in water.

When water sits on the top levels of the skin, it can sometimes evaporate into the air around you—a dehydrating process called transepidermal water loss. This is exacerbated on freshly exfoliated skin, as the excess dead skin cells present on the stratum corneum have been removed. 

There's a positive spin to this, too: All those hydrating ingredients and antioxidants in your lotion of choice can penetrate the skin a bit deeper. We recommend looking for a lotion with several types of moisturizing ingredients, so it can address skin hydration from several angles.