126,000 addicts in the UK are currently in rehab, but their chances of success are notoriously low. Now Brits are turning to a tough Thai clinic that was made famous by singer and heroin user Pete Doherty.

JULY 2005

Marie Clare

Milly Chowles 25, sips iced tea behind a pair of outsized sunglasses and says the most shocking thing about her life is that she is still alive.

"I've been so close to death so many times that really I should be dead now"

After years of bingeing on drugs and alcohol as a reckless party girl in Britain, Milly travelled to a remote Thai Buddhist monastery in late 2004 to put herself through an unusual rehabilitation programme. The monastery became famous last year when Pete Doherty tried and failed its gruelling treatment in an attempt to kick heroin.

"The programme is extreme but I realised that I had to take extreme action if I wanted to survive" said Milly.

Today ten weeks after leaving the monastery, Milly is sitting in an outdoor cafe in Thailand’s traffic choked capital Bangkok. She is clean and sober and hoping to stay that way. "I took a sacred vow that I'd never touch drugs again and I'm determined to keep it"

During her three month stay at Thamkrabok monastery- a sprawling complex tucked into a craggy valley two hours outside Bangkok- she underwent a unique "vomit cure" where addicts drink a bitter herbal potion that causes them to throw up violently to purify their bodies. Sweating and delirious she followed a strict regime of detox and meditation in a bare compound with no home comforts.

The monastery’s approach involves removing the trappings of a patients identity so they are forced to find inner strength. "I was strip searched by a Buddhist nun when I arrived and was given a pair of red pyjama's" recalls Milly who shared a room with one other female patient- a 39 year old British heroin addict.” We were woken at 5.am every day and locked in the dorm at 9pm and weren’t allowed any personal belongings. I often felt that I had made a terrible mistake"

Milly reads from her diary about her first treatment session-

"I've just swallowed a shot of thick herbal liquid that tastes like concentrated dirty ashtray, the potion kicked in and I started to vomit so energetically that I feel like my internal organs are being forced out. Other patients are standing by clapping in encouragement, I see the exit and want to run"

Thamkrabok’s methods which evolved in the 1960's to combat the rise in opium addiction among the Thai’s boasts a very high success rate, compared to most NHS and Private rehab programmes. Studies claim that of the thousands of addicts that have been through Thamkrabok, 65-70% remain drug free after one year. So how does it work?

Milly reached crisis point in August 2004-

"I woke up one morning not sure how I got home and discovered that I'd locked myself in and had to climb out the window to escape. I realised that my life was going nowhere"

In desperation she rang a Buddhist monastery in Scotland who said they didn’t take addicts but told her about Thamkrabok.

She was put in touch with East West Detox a UK charity founded in the mid 1990's by Mike Sarson a former NHS drug counsellor who became disillusioned with the treatments on offer.

The charity arranges travel to Thamkrabok and provided pre and after care. Sarson met Milly and felt she was a good candidate. Although the programme is free (anyone can turn up and be admitted if the monks think they have a genuine problem) East West Detox charges £3,500 per person to cover flights, provide a donation to the monastery and to monitor a patients recovery.

"The nature of addiction is relapse so its important that we monitor patients when they return from Thailand" says Sarson.

In comparison, NHS treatments cost £40,000 per person per year and private treatments like the Priory can cost £650 a day.

Milly was met at Bangkok airport by Natalie Hardy, a former patient from the UK who now helps out with foreign patients. "She looked like a scared rabbit" she recalls.

Milly however doesn’t remember a thing-

"I got off my head on vodka on the flight and passed out as soon as I got there. I was locked in my dorm and could hear dogs howling"

(This bit is in a small box to the side of the article)

Potential patients must first contact East West detox to ensure that they are a suitable candidate.

On arrival at the monastery a monk has a long chat with them to establish the nature of their addiction and to check for any suicidal tendencies or violent tendencies.

The patient undertakes vomit therapy for 5 days to expel toxins. This is supplemented by steam baths and meditation to develop inner strength. The patients are also invited to sweep the courtyard at 5.am with the monks as it is believed to be therapeutic. After 5 days the patient switches to strong detox tea.

There are no counselling sessions. The monks are available to give advice on spiritual matters and how to get the most from meditation.

Patients are locked in at 9pm to avoid the temptation of escape.

To contact East west Detox contact the website: www.east-westdetox.org.uk

When the door opened the next day she was greeted by the sight of 40 other patients sweeping the compound in red pyjama's beneath a three storey high statue of Buddha.

The staff of ten shaven headed monks were calmly preparing for the day ahead.

Despite her trepidation Milly got the hang of Thamkrabok's regime.

Each patient undergoes vomiting therapy for the first five days: at 5pm they squat in a row over a drain to the sound of clapping and singing which the monks believe exorcises the spirits that cause addiction.

The herbal medicine is made up of 108 different seeds, barks and leaves that the monks gather themselves from the forest then bless. The formula is so secret that the CIA failed to elicit it. The monks have no formal training but there is a live in nurse on site and a doctor also visits to deal with the side effects such as diarrhoea and dehydration.

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