“I've Spent More on Tweakments Than on Two Long-Haul Holidays”—How Treatment Stacking Became the New Normal

If you were to peek into the calendar of the modern, city-dwelling woman, you'll start to notice a slew of familiar—or, depending on your proximity to the beauty-industrial complex—unfamiliar terms. Slotted in like routine appointments with the hygienist, there will be Botox and filler, sure, but increasingly treatments like polynucleotides, rexonage, radio-frequency microneedling, thermage... The list goes on, and is only becoming more stacked, much like our approach to aesthetics.

Earlier this year, Laura Reilly of the popular Substack Magasin sparked furore after launching a new newsletter, High Touch, in which she detailed the tweakments and longevity and wellness practices she had recently undergone. The list was staggering. "In January alone,” she wrote, “I’ve done Botox, Emface, IPL, scheduled Moxi / broadband light, seen my orthodontist, cardiologist, GP, OBGYN, ophthalmologist, dermatologist, plastic surgeon, trainer, and pilates instructor." She also injects peptides, has a six- to eight-step skincare regimen, a supplement stack of 17 pills, and uses a slew of at-home devices. While the list was roundly criticised, Reilly identified something key: “I am not alone here.”

The Rise of Treatment Stacking

In 2026, the tweakment industry has gone mainstream. Once the domain of celebrities and the ultra-wealthy, procedures like Botox and filler have become democratised and are routine in many of our quarterly regimens. Data shows that average annual consumer spending in this category has increased by 28 per cent over a two-year period; and specifically, non-surgical treatments are expanding faster than traditional surgery. This is in part due to a rising interest in "prevention" from clients under 30: roughly 1 in 5 young adults aged 18 to 25 have already tried Botox and fillers.

Poppy*, 29, tells me that she has been treatment stacking for the past two years, after trying Botox. "It was like a gateway drug. I first started to notice some fine lines and then after seeing Instagram before-and-afters of people getting Botox to lift their brows and open up their eyes, I tried that too." In the past year, she's undergone tear-trough filler, lip filler, a round of polynucleotides for undereye rejuvenation, and is considering Endolift to "snatch" her jawline and remove what she refers to as her double chin. "I didn't realise I was treatment stacking, but once you start it's hard to stop, even though it's probably the most costly thing I've done all year."

She adds that all the tweakments have set her back more than her two long-haul holidays.

“I definitely think patients are more aware of the sheer number of aesthetic treatments available than they were five or ten years ago,” comments Dr Ahmed El Muntasar, who has clinics across the country. “Previously, somebody might come in asking about Botox or filler. Now patients arrive having researched skin boosters, polynucleotides, biostimulators, lasers, radiofrequency, ultrasound and regenerative treatments, sometimes wanting several of them at once.”

Per the doctor, in certain cases and amongst the right demographic, this is actually the correct approach. “Ageing is multifactorial. We lose collagen, skin quality and fat changes, as well as muscle. Addressing different aspects of ageing can produce a much more natural result than simply putting more filler into the face. The problem comes when ‘combination treatment’ becomes ‘everything, all the time’.”

The practitioners I speak to highlight that, interestingly, more men are opting for this approach, as they tend to prefer device-based tweaks with little-to-no downtime and more natural results. Certainly, recent research shows inquiries for men rose by roughly 30 per cent in 2025.

As Poppy touches on, our preference for “more is more” has been massively influenced by social media. “It has completely changed the entry point into aesthetics," says Dr Tony Kaliya of the Neu Clinic. "People are coming in far younger, far more informed (and sometimes misinformed), and with much more specific requests than they used to have, often referencing a filter, an influencer, or a fox-eye or doll-face filler. I have seen a noticeable rise in enquiries, particularly from people in their twenties. The reasons vary: some are genuinely curious about prevention and want to start early with light-touch treatments; others are responding to comparison; constant exposure to filtered or heavily edited faces online, which resets what feels like a “normal” appearance."

Plus: “We’re constantly seeing ourselves on our phones, on video calls and in photos, notes master facialist Iris Magnolac. "You start noticing things you probably wouldn’t have thought twice about before.”

Entering the Beauty Pilgrimage Era

Then there's the growing prevalence of “beauty pilgrimages” to Seoul, where celebrities or influencers fly to the South Korean capital for a packed, often week- or two-week-long schedule of treatments, starting early in the morning and ending late at night. It’s become aspirational, agrees nurse Teresa Tan, one of the few practitioners performing these cutting-edge Korean treatments here in the UK.

“It has normalised the idea that we should be doing several procedures at once. The prices can look enticing, but people don't always factor in flights, accommodation, aftercare or what happens if a complication develops once they're back home,” she explains. The other issue, she adds, is doing everything at once without a long-term plan.

"You can't necessarily tell what helped if seven to ten different procedures have been performed in one sitting. When travelling abroad for treatment, additional considerations include language barriers, understanding the practitioner's qualifications, informed consent, and continuity of care. If a complication develops after you've returned to the UK, accessing appropriate aftercare from the original treating clinic can be much more difficult."

When Tweakments Start to Distort Our Perception

It’s no surprise, then, that facial dysmorphia is becoming a growing concern for aesthetic practitioners. I can speak for myself: I’ve spent the last few months undergoing all manner of tweakments in the name of journalism, from microneedling and polynucleotides to radiofrequency and ultrasound-based treatments. While I haven't done anything invasive, it has made me more aware of the finer intricacies of my face. It’s an easy rabbit hole to find yourself down, especially if you have a history of dysmorphia.

Too many treatments absolutely can influence dysmorphia, in both directions, comments Dr Kaliya. “It can be a symptom of an existing body dysmorphic disorder, and repeated treatment without satisfaction can also entrench it further. The pattern I watch for is someone who is never quite happy with the result, who wants just ‘a little’ bit more immediately after a treatment has settled, who compares themselves to a filtered or edited image, or who becomes distressed by asymmetries so minor that most people would never notice them. I use structured questioning around this, and if I see those signs I won’t proceed — I’ll pause treatment, and where appropriate refer to a psychologist or GP. A good practitioner should be willing to say no, even to a paying patient.”

I ask Poppy if she thinks she's developed any form of facial dysmorphia. "Maybe," she hesitates, "I'm definitely a lot more conscious of what I look like, and when I'm pleased with the results, I feel like I should do more to keep it up. Looking at all these influencers and celebrities on Instagram does create a lot of pressure. We feel like we should look like them, but we don't live their lives."

* Names have been changed