I believe it, especially for women who pay for services.
I know a lot of people totally don't get spending money or time on superficial things, but I've always been stereotypically girly when it comes to appearance and enjoying clothing, beauty, etc. For me it's really not about social pressure. In fact I'd say I'm definitely more put together or high maintenance looking that most women I work with (I have a torn jeans and sandals casual office), but I just don't feel like myself without doing certain things. I take a lot of pride in my appearance and I find personal care routines to be sort of calming and centering. I feel like I can operate better in the world when I look as good as I can and I'm much more confident.
I mitigate costs by DIY-ing a lot and skipping on designer BS. I do my own deep hair conditioning treatments and I cut my own hair (no hair dyeing for me), I have a mani/pedi pretty much at all times but I DIY that too (learned from youtube!) and I buy nail varnish online for the best prices. I wax/shave at home, I pluck my own eyebrows, do my own facials, take long baths/steams at home, etc. I dress fashionably but inexpensively and often shop off season/discount/thrift. I do my makeup every day, but I only have two real looks (daytime natural and going out) so I only own a tiny pouch of quality sephora products, which I buy with points I get through a work rewards program. All in, it's not that expensive to do these things if you do most of it at home. I make a lot of the products I use or find them discounted online, and I don't overbuy or impulse buy.
If I did the same routine I do now, but outsourced it. Whew, well a mani/pedi every week would be about $40 with tip, a facial can be $150 or more and I do one a week with my DIY plan, waxing is at least $120 if you pay a pro and that's once a month, eyebrow threading can be like another $20, hair cut would be at least $80 plus a tip, and this is all without buying makeup or clothing or soap. So yeah, I definitely see how the spending would be so high for many women.