Rehabilitation tourism is the latest development in a growing list of professional medical services available in Thailand. The country already enjoys international acclaim for superb medical and spa services. Holistic wellness, detoxification and weight loss programmes have grown quickly for the past five years. There is a number of centres that offer expert treatments that have attracted a range of international clientele from celebrities to politicians and business people.

Health entrepreneurs combine Western medicine and Eastern alternative therapies. These centres offer holistic treatments that include the psychological and spiritual sides of addiction, not simply the chemical dependency. They offer therapeutic spa therapies that help clients cope with their addiction. These treatments are not employed for beautification purposes, but for the benefits they offer in the early stages of recovery. Other therapies like yoga, massage and aromatherapy help clients to realise healthy ways of relaxing. They provide an enjoyable and accessible alternative to drinking or drug abuse which become habitual coping mechanisms for stress and, the most common triggers for relapse. Holistic therapies complement bio-psychological recovery as they help people regain their health and mental focus.

Kanchanaburi’s Channah Thailand and Chiang Mai’s Breathing Space offer new and highly effective approaches to drug and alcohol treatment. Substance abusers who complete rehab programmes are far more likely to make a full recovery. The average completion rate for residential programmes is about 50 per cent. However Channah Thailand has a 92 per cent completion rate which is among the very best results for any clinic in the world.

Channah and Breathing Space are both located in secluded rural locations, Channah along the scenic shores of the River Kwai and Breathing Space in the mountains of Chiang Mai. Guests will stay in their own luxury bungalow with private veranda, a maid and laundry service. Clients are welcome to wonder through tropical landscaped gardens, enjoy spa and fitness facilities, study in the library or kick back in the home cinema. Both centres are set up and designed to show clients how to use their free time constructively and to relax, socialise and enjoy themselves without chemical stimulation.

But this is no holiday and the people walking through the doors of either clinic are in for long struggle to get clean. Channah and Breathing Space apply many similar techniques in their individualised courses of treatment, but some fundamental differences remain.

At Channah, English-speaking patients are guided through a 28-day programme which uses cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), fitness coaching, counselling and group work to help patients envision and realise a lifestyle without drugs or alcohol. This is shorter than the typical twelve-week rehab programme, which allows people to slip off for treatment without noticeable absence. Shorter or longer courses are available depending on personal circumstance, although 28 days is a recommended minimum.

“Channah offered me an environment and a community of people who did know what hellhole I had been going through,” commented an 18-year-old woman in a voluntary testimonial. “Nobody judged me, nobody thought I was strange, nobody saw me as ‘different.’ No matter how old I was, what I had, where I was from, what drug I had been taking, how much or how little I was taking, there was one thing that we all had in common as clients here: an addiction. The understanding I had from the staff and the other clients was incredible. I felt safe in their hands.”

Channah Thailand uses cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as its core treatment. What CBT does is help uncover the emotional or psychological issues which push people into substance abuse. Treating addiction as a socially informed coping mechanism rather than a disease, CBT equips patients with cognitive tools to fight the urge to use. It seeks to change the way addicts see themselves and interact with their environment and society. They will also learn to recognize and avoid situations which may lead to relapse and cope with the problems which drove them to drink or drugs in the first place.

“Our CBT programme is based on the UK model, so our programme is quite similar but with more focus on the individual,” says Channah’s Dupuis. “Because we are in Thailand we can add a lot more services for the same cost. That means one-to-one sessions and lower patient to therapist ratios. For equivalent services abroad, we are significantly cheaper. The Priory in London costs 5,500 pounds per week — that’s more than double our costs.”

“In this part of the world we can achieve a value for money on the service we provide that many other international facilities of this standard cannot match,” says Breathing Space’s Russell. “Thailand and the region offer a therapeutic value. It gives people a sense of fun and enjoyment which has for years been intrinsically linked with drugs, helping them to see that there is more to life than drug use,” he adds.

On arriving at Bangkok airport, clients will be met by a staff member and escorted to Channah where they will immediately undergo a health exam and detoxification. After a clinical assessment, a rehabilitation programme will be designed that suits the individual. Again, drawing on integrative medicine’s focus on lifestyle change, Channah offers a wide array of spa treatments, fitness programmes like yoga or boxing, meditation and various other activities including kayaking and gardening. There is plenty of choice to help clients relax and discover new hobbies and interests.

Breathing Space Thailand adopts a slightly different approach, basing treatment on the tried and tested 12-step programme used around the world to treat drug and alcohol addictions. It is typically used in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings. It is a spiritual process which looks to a higher power for consolation and reassurance, but it is not a strictly religious process and is open to people of all faiths. Here recovery will depend on admitting to and accepting the problem and looking to a fellowship group for support. Personal accountability, humility, acceptance, letting go and spiritual growth are important aspects of the course. Breathing space provides a pure and non-threatening environment to discard personal fears and insecurities, to grow and to recover. Through counselling and group therapy, clients will come to realise the damage an addiction can inflict on themselves and their loved ones.

A variety of primary care techniques will also be applied according to bespoke recovery courses, selected by an experienced practitioner. These include CBT and other techniques like hypnotherapy, creative play therapy, and rational emotive therapy which all help uncover the triggers of addiction.

Aftercare is a vital element in any rehabilitation course, so Channah and Breathing Space offer comprehensive packages to ensure long lasting success. Channah maintains an extensive network of trustworthy aftercare specialists around the world and will organise twelve weeks of individual therapy to help people stay clean once they get home. Breathing Space offers a 12-step programme with local support groups as well as monthly follow-ups from staff.

Families are very much involved in the process as well. Breathing Space offers an intervention service and a family programme because they too are often adversely affected by addiction. Breathing Space will help family members cope with confusion, stress and anxiety, as well as offer advice on ways they can help manage a relative’s addiction.

Both centres are staffed by well qualified professionals. Psychologists, counsellors and psychotherapists are licensed and accredited members of various professional bodies in Thailand and abroad which follow strict ethical codes. By limiting the number of clients at any one time, these centres try to ensure that nothing compromises their premium quality service or distracts from their guests’ recovery.

Channah Thailand
Kanchanaburi, Thailand
+66 (0) 86 881 0908
E-mail: info@channahthailand.com

Breathing Space Thailand
Chiang Mai, Thailand
+66 800 331 677
E-mail: info@breathingspacethailand.com

Source: Tourism Authority of Thailand