At India’s extreme spa, the solution to heartbreak is to down two gallons of liquid in one go

Five years ago, my husband left me for a younger model.

In that time, I tried to keep my family together, hoping that he would come back to us. But eventually I had to face the fact that he had chosen otherwise, and that it was time to move on.

Those five years had taken their toll. I was unfit and unhealthy; none of my clothes would fit me. Looking in the mirror, I saw the spectre of a lonely, ugly old age beckoning. It was time to take drastic action.

I had seen panchakarma at work long before I knew what it was about. I bumped into an old friend who three years previously had lost his wife to a brain tumour. After a trip to India, where he had undergone the treatment, my bereaved and shattered friend was transformed: he was nearly two stone lighter, his eyes were clear, his skin glowed; he exuded energy, good humour and zest for life. Whatever panchakarma was, I knew I wanted it, too.

Three months later, I found myself at Ayurveda Yoga Village, a four-hour drive south of Goa. While technically a hospital, the “village” turned out to be more like a slightly run-down holiday resort: 18 simple rooms clustered beneath a grove of shady fir trees, which led onto a six-mile white beach.