The debilitating condition Irritable Bowel Syndrome, known as IBS, now affects up to 8 million people in the UK, and the medical profession are still unable to define a specific cause. Around 50% of sufferers report that their symptoms started close to a stressful period in their lives, such as a divorce, moving house, suddenly losing a job, or bereavement. Many people believe that their IBS is caused by an allergy to specific foods, as eating a meal often triggers the symptoms.

Traditional treatment methods for IBS have included dietary changes, anti-spasmodic medicines, muscle relaxants and even anti-depressants, but unfortunately this has proved to be ineffective for a number of sufferers.

Recently, following significant research into the benefits gained by IBS sufferers, the medical profession on both sides of the Atlantic has begun recommending Hypnotherapy or CBT as frontline treatments.

In 1995 a study on the positive effectiveness of using CBT to alleviate the symptoms of IBS was completed at the State University of New York in Albany: additionally, research published in the BMJ recently concluded that approaches such as Hypnotherapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and antidepressant drugs could be most helpful.

A clinic in Spain has taken the IBS treatment a step further by combining both of the therapies, resulting in a very focused approach.

At the small British clinic in Fuengirola, they have spent four years developing their treatment, which they have been successfully using on a range of stress related conditions including IBS. The therapy is called Life ArchitectureTM, and comprises of a range of components one of which is the intelligent combination of both CBT and Hypnotherapy, with one therapy being used to underpin the other, as and when required, often producing quite outstanding results.

The treatment contains little that is new, but its approach and methodology especially the blending of therapies is certainly different. The therapy incorporates the use of their own Forensic - Diagnostic Questioning' process, designed, quite cleverly, to ensure the therapist has the best opportunity to swiftly find and treat the primary cause of the problem, rather than the symptoms.

Whilst the Elite clinic offers its non-residential treatment package to the ever-increasing number of Brits living in Spain, it continues, much to everyone's surprise, to receive enquiries on a near daily basis from individuals interested in travelling over to Spain for a few days for the low cost treatment.