01
Arrive empty
No food for three hours beforehand. You are shown to a private cleansing room and left to change.
Colon cleansing in Phuket
Colema,
explained properly.
What a colema actually is, how it differs from an enema and from colonic hydrotherapy, how we do it at Santosa — and who should not do it at all.
The short answer
What is a colema?
A colema is a gentle, self-administered colon cleanse. You lie on a colema board — a simple slanted board that rests between a raised bench and the toilet — while warm water flows in slowly from a bucket above, under nothing but gravity. No pump, no pressure, no machine.
The water goes in a little at a time and leaves on its own. A session uses roughly 15 litres over about 45 minutes, and you stay in control of the flow from start to finish. The word comes from colon and enema: it is essentially a long, slow, low-pressure enema done lying down.
It is the oldest and least technological part of what Santosa does, and the part guests ask about most before arriving — and mention least afterwards.
Not the same thing
Colema, enema or colonic
hydrotherapy?
Three different procedures, routinely confused. The differences are worth knowing before you book anything, here or anywhere else.
| Colema | Home enema | Colonic hydrotherapy | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water used | ~15 litres, in stages | 0.5–2 litres | Continuous, machine-fed |
| Pressure | Gravity only | Gravity only | Pump, regulated |
| Who operates it | You do | You do | A therapist |
| Duration | About 45 minutes | 10–20 minutes | 30–45 minutes |
| Privacy | Alone, in a private room | Alone | Therapist present |
At Santosa we use the colema method. If you have had colonic hydrotherapy before and expect a machine and a therapist in the room, this is a different — and for most people, calmer — experience.
At Santosa
How a session actually goes
02
The session
About 45 minutes on the board, at your own pace, with a member of the team within earshot the whole time.
03
Restore
A fresh coconut water and a probiotic straight after — the point is to put the good back, not only take things out.
04
Rest
Sauna, ice pool and the swimming pool are yours for the rest of the visit. Most people sleep unusually well that night.
Straight talk
What it does,
and what it doesn't.
Guests consistently report feeling lighter, less bloated and clearer-headed, and that is worth something on its own. What we will not tell you is that a colema cures disease, removes mysterious "toxins" you can see in a bucket, or replaces medical treatment. It doesn't.
It is a comfortable, low-pressure way to empty the colon, most useful as part of a fasting program — which is exactly how we use it: twice a day, during Full Fast and Juice Fast, when the body is releasing more than usual and there is a real reason to help it along.
Who should not
- Pregnancy
- Recent abdominal or bowel surgery
- Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, diverticulitis in flare
- Severe haemorrhoids or anal fissures
- Kidney disease, heart failure or uncontrolled hypertension
- Bowel cancer, or an undiagnosed change in bowel habit
This list is not exhaustive. Tell us about your health when you book, and if you are managing a condition or taking medication, speak to your own doctor first. We would rather turn a booking away than take one we shouldn't.
Three ways
Where a colema fits.
You do not have to commit to a week of fasting to try one. Guests staying elsewhere in Phuket are welcome too.
About 1 hourSpring Clean
One session, on its own. The simplest way to find out whether this is for you, without booking anything else.
THB 1,200 per person
Detail
Half or full dayDay programs
Colema combined with massage, sauna and ice — one or two sessions across a day. No meals included.
THB 2,200 from
Detail
3 to 21 daysInside a fasting program
Twice daily through Full Fast and Juice Fast, with consultation, supplements, daily massage and tracking.
THB 16,800 from · 3 days
Detail
Good questions
What people ask
No. The water is warm and arrives under gravity alone, so there is no pressure behind it. Most people describe a feeling of fullness that comes and goes, not pain. You control the flow throughout and can stop whenever you want.
You are alone in a private room with a bathroom, and nobody watches. A member of the team is within earshot if you need them, and that is all. This is the question we are asked most, and the one guests laugh about afterwards.
A smooth, slanted board that rests with one end on a raised bench and the other over the toilet. You lie on it with your knees bent. It is the whole apparatus — that, a bucket of warm water above you, and a tube. Nothing electrical is involved.
Colonic hydrotherapy uses a machine that pushes water in under regulated pressure, operated by a therapist who stays in the room. A colema uses gravity and you administer it yourself. Same purpose, gentler method, more privacy.
Inside our fasting programs, twice a day for the length of the program, because the body is releasing more than usual. On its own, occasionally. Colon cleansing is not something to do habitually without a reason, and we will say so if you ask us for more than makes sense.
Yes. The Spring Clean is a single session at THB 1,200 and is open to visitors staying anywhere in Phuket. Book at least a day ahead so the room is prepared, and do not eat for three hours before.
Try one
One session is enough
to stop wondering.
Tell us a day and we will hold a room for you.