The Perrin Technique
The Perrin Technique™ is an osteopathic approach developed in 1989, originally for ME/CFS, that aims to manually drain toxins from the cerebrospinal fluid into the lymphatic system. Movement of the spine and massage of the soft tissues in the head, neck, back and chest direct all the toxins out of the lymphatic system and into the blood, where they are eventually detoxified in the liver.
Eventually, with less poisons affecting the central nervous system, the hypothalamus and the sympathetic nervous system begin to function correctly, restoring health to the patient.
A Novel Approach to ME/CFS
The Perrin Technique™ is a manual method that aids the diagnosis and treatment of ME/CFS based on the theory that stress factors which can be physical, emotional, chemical, or immunological (such as allergies or infections) can cause excessive strain on the sympathetic nervous system, leading to ME/CFS.
The sympathetic nervous system spreads throughout the entire body affecting every type of tissue, but more importantly receiving messages from all the tissues e.g. skin, muscle, blood vessel, gland, lymph vessel etc. The latter forms an important network of small channels carrying lymph, which is a transparent bodily fluid collected from all tissues and eventually returned to the blood.
The lymphatic system is basically a secondary waste disposal unit within the body that flushes out the waste products of the cells and foreign bodies that are toxic to us. The fluid motility in the lymph is helped by pressure from the blood flow in the surrounding blood vessels, and so the lymphatic tissue will be engorged with fluid if the blood circulation is not working properly.
The sympathetic nerves also have been found to control a pump mechanism within the main drainage of the lymphatic system which becomes disturbed in ME/CFS. The resultant backflow further engorges the lymphatic vessels, especially in the chest and neck.