Wellness is a seductive lie – and it is changing how we treat illness

In desperate need of hydrotherapy, Abi Palmer went to a sanatorium - and found herself surrounded by luxury. How has health been sold as a lifestyle choice?

In 2017 I received an Arts Council England grant to complete research for my book Sanatorium. Writing a book was the only way I could think of funding a much-needed visit to a water-based physiotherapy rehabilitation programme, which was necessary to help symptoms caused by psoriatic arthritis and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. So I found myself in the sanatorium of my dreams: a thermal hydrotherapy centre on an island in the middle of the River Danube.

It was a cold October when I made it to the island. There were bridges to the mainland, but I am not able to walk reliably for more than a few metres, and if I use my mobility scooter in the cold, my legs seize up quickly and become incredibly painful. As a result, I was almost completely isolated at the sanatorium. I only left the strange, insulated building when my mental health was suffering so much that the risk to my body began to feel worth it.