By Dr Duncan Brennand, Lead Aesthetic Doctor at L’Atelier Aesthetics, 101 Harley Street
Most patients who come to us asking about a facelift are not actually ready for surgery. What they want is to look less tired, more defined along the jawline, and generally more like the version of themselves from five years ago. There are several non-surgical treatments that can deliver that, and they work in different ways. Below is my honest ranking of the five I use most often at the clinic, and where each one fits.
For most patients with early laxity and softness along the lower face, Sofwave is the treatment I rank first. It has no meaningful downtime and results peak at three months. For patients with more advanced laxity, a combination of Sofwave and Julaine, or Morpheus8 and Julaine, is usually what the face actually needs.
A surgical facelift physically repositions and removes tissue. Non-surgical alternatives cannot do that. What they can do is encourage the skin to produce new collagen, tighten existing collagen through carefully applied heat, and restore volume where it has been lost. The combination of those effects produces a meaningful visual lift in patients with early to moderate laxity, because much of what we see as sagging is actually skin and tissue that has thinned and lost its structure over time.
None of these treatments will match what surgery can do for a patient with significant laxity. That is honest and important. Non-surgical options sit in the space between good skincare and surgery, which is where most patients in their late thirties, forties and early fifties actually are.
Non-surgical lifting suits patients with early to moderate laxity, early jowling, softening along the jawline, a less defined neck contour and reduced cheek projection. The skin needs enough resilience left to respond to treatment, which is usually the case up to the mid-fifties. Beyond that, non-surgical work still helps but is often better positioned as maintenance alongside surgical planning.
Patients who are better suited to surgery are those with significant excess skin, deep folds that no amount of filler will correct, and jowling that is structural rather than superficial. We will be direct about that at consultation rather than recommending a non-surgical plan that will disappoint.
For a patient in her mid-forties with early jowling, thinning cheeks and skin that has lost its quality, a typical plan might look like this: Profhilo in April, Sofwave in May, Julaine in June, small cheek filler in September to refine. That is a six-month plan that produces a visibly lifted, better-rested face without any single dramatic change. Patients look like themselves, only more rested, which is almost always what they are asking for.
| Rank | Treatment | How it lifts | Sessions | Downtime |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sofwave | Focused sound energy firms and lifts over three months with no needles | 1 session | None |
2 | Morpheus8 | Firms the skin and improves texture, leaving patients looking more rested | 3 sessions, 6 weeks apart | 24 to 48 hours of redness |
3 | Julaine | Encourages the skin to rebuild its own firmness, softening early jowling and the lower face | 1 to 2 treatments | Minimal |
4 | Profhilo | Improves overall skin quality and hydration, making other lifting treatments work better | 2 sessions, 4 weeks apart | Minimal |
5 | Dermal filler | Restores lost volume in the cheeks, jawline and chin to recreate structure | As needed at consultation | Minimal |
“The ranking is not a league table. It is a reflection of where each treatment fits. Sofwave leads because in 2026 it has the strongest evidence and the cleanest patient experience for a single-session lift. Morpheus8 is second because of the textural benefit it adds. Julaine is third because it does the slower, structural work that makes the others look better. The answer for almost every real patient is a combination, not a single treatment.”
Dr Duncan Brennand, Lead Aesthetic Doctor, L’Atelier Aesthetics
At the clinic, every injectable on this list is delivered personally by Dr Brennand. Sofwave and Morpheus8 are delivered by our team, Emma, Kate and Bronte, after Dr Brennand’s consultation and under his clinical lead.
Non-surgical lifting has come a long way and for most patients in their late thirties to mid-fifties, a well-planned combination of treatments can produce a genuinely refreshed, lifted result without surgery. Sofwave, Morpheus8 and Julaine do the main work. Profhilo sets the foundation. Filler refines what remains. The right combination depends on where you are starting from, which is what the consultation is for. Our clinic is at 101 Harley Street, London W1G 6AH, within easy walking distance of Bond Street, Oxford Circus and Regent’s Park. Book through the website or call us if you would rather speak first.
For most patients in 2026, Sofwave is our first-choice single-treatment non-surgical lift. For patients with more advanced laxity or textural concerns, a combination of Sofwave or Morpheus8 with Julaine tends to produce the most complete result.
Sofwave is usually described as warm rather than painful. Morpheus8 is more intense and requires a numbing cream applied for 30 to 45 minutes beforehand. Injectables are done with fine needles and are generally well tolerated.
Sofwave, Morpheus8 and Julaine all typically last 12 to 18 months. Most patients return for a maintenance session annually to keep the result in place.
For patients with early to moderate laxity, a non-surgical plan can produce a genuinely lifted result without surgery. For patients with significant excess skin or deeper structural laxity, non-surgical work improves but does not replace what surgery can achieve. Dr Brennand will be direct about this at consultation.
Non-surgical lifting is not performed during pregnancy or breastfeeding, in patients with active skin infection in the treatment area, or in patients with certain implanted electronic devices where radiofrequency-based treatments are involved. Patients with severe laxity are better served by a surgical referral.
Yes. Most non-surgical lifting plans combine a tightening treatment, a collagen stimulator and occasionally a filler, sequenced across three to six months. Dr Brennand draws up the exact sequence at consultation.
We welcome patients from across Marylebone, Mayfair, Fitzrovia, Regent’s Park, Soho, Knightsbridge, Belgravia, Chelsea and Kensington, as well as visitors travelling to London for specialist aesthetic and skin treatments. Our location benefits from excellent transport links, with Oxford Circus only a 13 minute walk away, Bond Street and Regent’s Park Underground stations are also both within easy reach. The clinic is also conveniently accessible from major London rail stations and Heathrow, Gatwick and London City airports thanks to the Elizabeth line, making visits straightforward for both UK and international patients.
Whether you are travelling from within London or further afield, our Harley Street clinic provides a calm, professional environment for personalised aesthetic and skin health treatments in one of the capital’s most respected medical locations.
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