The cultural buzz around high-end health clinics is loud. The White Lotus brought us biometric testing and sensory deprivation tanks in the tropics, and the latest season of Nine Perfect Strangers plays out in an alpine medi-spa so lavish you’d overlook the twisted plot lines in the name of a visit.

Sitting in a plump armchair hooked up to an IV drip, I could be in either one of those shows. Instead, I’m at Rakxa, an integrated wellness and medical retreat on the outskirts of Bangkok. It’s positioned on the tiny island of Bang Krachao about 40 minutes from the centre of the Thai capital, and fuses Western medicine, ancient healing traditions, longevity and luxury into one 32-hectare, 42-villa retreat.