27 East Street, Ashburton, Newton Abbot, Devon, TQ13 7AQ
For appointments or further information please call 07957 605134 or email us at max@secchi.co.uk.
Osteopathy £30 for a 40 minute osteopathic consultation
Sleep Therapy Course of 6 sessions £30 per appointment
Perrin Technique Treatment
£30 for a 40 minute appointment
The South Dartmoor Clinic brings to Ashburton over twenty years of osteopathic experience and expertise. Treatments are available from Max Secchi (Registered Osteopath and Perrin Practitioner) and Kate Fry (Registered Osteopath), both graduates of the British School of Osteopathy, in the relaxing and supportive atmosphere of the South Dartmoor Clinic. We are located within the historic stannary town of Ashburton, in the Teignbridge region of south west Devon.
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) or ME/CFS are some of several names given to a poorly understood, highly debilitating disorder of uncertain cause/causes, which is thought to affect approximately 250,000 people in the UK. It is also known as Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome (PVFS) or Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) and there seems to be a link with Gulf War Syndrome.
ME / CFS is marked by long term physical and mental exhaustion, often severe, and by other specific symptoms, arising usually in previously healthy and active people. All types of people at all ages are affected. ME / CFS occurs more often, but not exclusively, in women, for unknown reasons but thought to be linked to hormonal fluctuations and increased lymphatic tissue in the breast. ME / CFS is most easily diagnosed when previously active adults become ill, and is most commonly found in young to middle aged adults, although it can also affect children, adolescents and the elderly. The most common symtopms are severe and debilitating fatigue, painful muscles and joints, disordered sleep, gastric disturbances, and poor memory and concentration. The onset is often linked to a viral infection but other triggers may include trauma. immunisation or an operation. There remains no objective assay or pathological finding which is widely accepted to be diagnostic of CFS. Diagnosis is usually made by exclusion, made on the basis of patient history and symptomatic criteria. There are some tests exist which can help diagnosis.
Many people with ME / CFS report a sudden, drastic start to their illness. Sufferers may remember a specific day or even hour when they noticed the onset. Often ME / CFS starts with, or is triggered by, another infection or illness. Many people remember a case of a flu-like or other respiratory infection from which they seem never to fully recover and which develops into ME / CFS . Some patients report that it began after immunisation or even a blood transfusion. Some cases have a very slow onset, sometimes developing over years.
In 2003 the Canadian Clinical Working Definition of ME / CFS divided the symptoms of ME / CFS into eight categories:
For all ME / CFS sufferers the main symptom is likely to be incapacitating fatigue that is:
When diagnosing ME / CFS the fatigue must be accompanied by a minimum of 4 of the following eight symptoms:
1. Impairment of short-term memory and concentration
2. Sore throat
3. Tender lymph nodes
4. Muscle pain
5. Multi-joint pain
6. Headaches of a new type, pattern, or severity
7. Unrefreshing sleep or insomnia
8. Post-exertional malaise or fatigue lasting more than 24 hours after exertion.
Most sufferers with ME / CFS will see their illness fit one of the categories below:
Dr Raymond Perrin has been resarching ME / CFS for the last 18 years. As an osteopathy he first noticed some postural similarities in ME / CFS sufferers which when corrected could lead to a dramatic improvement in the patients ME symptoms. He has postulated that toxins build up in the cerebro-spinal fluid, the fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord due to poor drainage caused by these postural restrictions. His research shows that by improving the circulation of the cerebro spinal fluid using gentle cranial osteopathic techniques and by aiding lymphatic drainage using effulage many ME / CFS sufferers will see a significant improvement in their symptoms. Dr Perrin goes as far as claiming a cure rate of 30% in his patients.
The Perrin Technique also involves prescribing the ME sufferer some gentle exercises to help restore movement in the thoracic spine, self massage to improve the circulation of cerebro spinal fluid and lymphatic drainage. Combined with some supplements for improving the physiology of the nervous system and detoxification by the liver.
Max Secchi (Registsered Osteopath) is a trained and registered Perrin practitioner. The Perrin Technique has been shown to be helpful to chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) sufferers. Max uses the methods researched by Dr Raymond Perrin who has shown that chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) can be caused by poor circulation of the cerebrospinal fluid and lymphatics resulting in a toxic build up. Treatment involves osteopathic techniques to stimulate the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid and lymphatic drainage, restoration of upper back function and to facilitate detoxification by the liver.
Insomnia and sleeplessness in a serious problem for many people resulting in poor health, anxiety relationship problems and depression. Max uses a scientifically studied approach formulated in sleep clinics in the USA. The sessions seek to understand why the patient is having poor sleep and will identify any bad sleep habits or behaviours. Over the course of six sessions in the sleep clinic the patient will gain insight into their insomnia or sleeplessness and how they can help themselves by altering sleep patterns, keeping a sleep diary and looking at cognitive behavioural techniques to improve the sleep they are getting. The techniques have a wonderful success rate and most people report improved sleep within two to three sessions. Max may also occasionally use some osteopathy to speed up the process.
Max uses a mixture of cognitive behavioural techniques, meditation and relaxation methods, and nutrition and exercise which is individually tailored to the patient's needs. Overall we will create a useful, effective, easy to follow stress management plan which will offer help in the short and long term coping mechanisms of the patient.
Close to the A38 we are within easy reach of Exeter (EX1, EX2 and EX4), Newton Abbot (TQ12), Buckfast and Buckfastleigh, Torquay and Torbay (TQ1, TQ2 and TQ4), Totnes (TQ9) and Plymouth (PL3, PL4, PL7, PL9). Parking in Ashburton is easy often with free "on street" parking outside the door or numerous public car parks within a few minutes walk.
The South Dartmoor Clinic
27 East Street, Ashburton, Newton Abbot, TQ13 7AQ
For appointments or further information please call 07957 605134 or email us at max@secchi.co.uk.