The medical procedure involved in the fitting of a surgical Gastric Band (GB) is relatively safe and reasonably pain free, especially when it is undertaken using Keyhole (laparoscopic) surgery.
Spain, December 01, 2008 — Imagine being overweight, and visiting a clinic and told to lean back in a comfortable chair whilst being gently taken through a process, which included virtual reality, guided imagery, visualisation, hypnotherapy and other techniques, afterwards waking up fully convinced that you had just undergone a medical procedure under general anaesthetic.
A dream situation for many, especially if the imagined procedure involved the fitting of a Gastric Band. During the session, which lasts approximately two hours, at a desired moment in the process the treatment room has a commercial fragrance automatically introduced, which is a perfect match to that of an operating theatre, the change is purposely achieved very slowly, normally it is not noticed until much later in the session. The client spends a little time holding an actual surgical gastric band, and is shown just how it ‘mechanically works’ they have a go at inflating it with a syringe, just as if it had been surgically fitted.
Detailed discussions take place about the pre-med, why it is used, how it works and that he or she may start to feel very relaxed, drowsy, and possibly even sleepy afterwards. From this point on in the session the level of the lighting is lowered, automatically and once again very slowly, whilst the client is introduced to the idea of lying on a trolley and undertaking that memorable journey from the hospital ward to the operating theatre.
Once at the theatre the whole concept of them having a general anaesthetic is introduced, and discussed in detail, it is suggested that the client will possibly feel a gentle scratch on the back of the hand when the anaesthetic is injected (all mentally of course) around this time and without the client being aware sound effects are gently introduced to mirror those of the operating theatre. During this part of the session the room temperature changes, ending up at 21 degrees C, with the room humidity set at exactly 50%, as you would expect of course, this is exactly the level recommended for all modern and efficient operating theatres! As far as the Gastric mind Band client is concerned this feels very, very real, to them maybe it is!
During the following weeks and months they continue to experience all the sensations expected by a person who had physically had a band fitted, including the steady and continuous weight loss. However, even though the band is imaginary it is producing virtually identical results, there has been no surgery or general anaesthetic with none of the associated risks, or of course the costs.
The Gastric mind Band therapy was conceived and developed in Southern Spain by co-founders and clinical therapists at the Elite Clinic, Martin and Marion Shirran who have spent the last twelve months fine-tuning the Gastric mind Band Therapy (GmB) in preparation for its official launch.
As with many unique innovations, the GmB therapy originated from a brief conversation with a client, who said to Martin, “I just know that if I had a Gastric Band fitted like my neighbour the weight would drop off me. Couldn’t you just hypnotise me and make me believe that I had undergone the procedure and be done with it?”
During a flight back to London that evening Martin and Marion talked through the clients ‘off the cuff’ comment and realised that there may be some substance to it, hypnotherapy alone however proved not to be the solution. Over the following twelve months they developed a unique therapy, which cleverly combined Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, NLP, Hypnotherapy and guided imagery, each being used to ‘underpin’ the other, resulting in the GmB therapy and the client’s wish being granted!
The total treatment package involves four pleasant and relaxing sessions at the clinic, which can be spread over anything from four to fourteen days, just like the recipients of the conventional gastric band, the clients are invited back to the clinic after one month to have the band adjusted to suit the agreed rate of weight loss. A final session is provided as the client approaches his or her target weight, both of the two follow up sessions are free of any extra charges.
The GmB therapy is currently only available in Spain at the British run Elite Clinic. Clients travelling to Spain specifically for treatment are invited to undertake the treatment over anything from a four-day weekend break up to a more leisurely two weeks. Additional information on the treatment and the clinic can be found at www.gmband.com.
email; [email protected]
The Elite Clinic: 0034 951 311 591
Contact:
Martin & Marion Shirran
Elite Clinics
Spain
0034-951-311-591
[email protected]
