For sure - too much pressure, and (but not always) coupled with the wrong blade angle for the pass the is being made. You really want to use the lightest touch possible that still gets the job done. If you play guitar, you will see beginners have a choke hold on the neck trying to force the string down. When you see an experienced player, he barlely touches the string and only uses enough pressure to get the string to contact the fret. This is what you need sto strive for relative to pressure.

Now blade angle is another matter. The way I learned the correct angle was to lay the blade almost flat and lift slightly as I moved into the stroke, gauging what felt like pulling or abrading the skin.

I use Nivea Replenishing Balm and it was a real lifesaver when I started.

Good luck and practice!