Vines & Rushes Winery: Wisconsin-grown wine with every sip
Intent to combine, advance care in rural Midwest
June 17, 2024
CASCADE/SHEBOYGAN – Scott Bartell – acupuncturist and owner of 7 Stones Acupuncture and Wellness – said his life didn’t necessarily take the path he had thought it would.
Bartell said he started his career as a professional chef and brewmaster in Colorado.
“(However), the bottom dropped out on the career I was following as a brewer,” he said.
But as life tends to do, Scott said, it led him to his next step.
“There was a great school in Boulder called Southwest Acupuncture College,” he said. “I applied last minute, figuring I’d probably fail out because I was never a good student… But I finished the first semester with a 4.0.”
Bartell said he completed the four-year program – which included 2,800 hours of classroom and clinic training – and earned his master’s degree in acupuncture.
“I first started my practice in West Bend in May 2014,” he said. “I was also the full-time brewmaster at Riverside Brewery. I would brew beer from about six in the morning until about midday and then treat patients from 2 p.m. until about 8:30 p.m. My clinic was five minutes away.”
Bartell said burnout set in quickly, and he recognized some changes needed to be made.
It was then he said he moved the clinic to rural Cascade on the property that used to be Kettle Moraine Vineyards.
“So, the winery has become my home clinic,” he said.
Branching out
Bartell said he then began subletting space at Sheboygan Acupuncture, which at the time was led by Dr. Max Haid, who is now retired.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Bartell said Haid took a leave of absence and never returned – “so, I ended up purchasing Sheboygan Acupuncture.”
Bartell said he splits his time between the Cascade (N3211 County Road S) and Sheboygan (4027 S. Business Drive, Suite 202) offices.
Acupuncture
Bartell said there are several different forms of acupuncture.
“By definition, acupuncture is a type of alternative therapy and a primary component of traditional Chinese medicine that uses tiny, thin needles,” he said. “These needles are skillfully inserted into your skin at strategic points to alleviate pain, manage stress and promote overall wellness.”
The science, Bartell said, addresses the body as a whole through neurohormonal pathways.
“The practice involves inserting needles through specific points in the body to stimulate the nerve,” he said. “The nerve then sends signals to the brain, and the brain releases natural healing hormones, such as beta-endorphins.”
Bartell said his acupuncture style is a traditional Japanese style, called Kototama Inochi.
“It is derived from ancient Shinto Traditions,” he said. “This is combined with a few best practices from sports medicine (orthopedic) acupuncture.”
Bartell said 85% of what he does is correct imbalances within the body so “the body regains the ability to self-regulate, heal and correct itself – like we are designed to do.”
Stress and the environment, he said, both play a significant role in disturbing balance for all of us.
“We are so overridden with stress – from emotions, from the environment, from physical, from everything else that only holds for so long, unless you’re diligent through many different facets of your life,” he said. “So, 85% of what I am doing is balancing so the body can take care of itself.”
Bartell said he looks at 12 different organ systems in the body and determines (from pulse) which of these organ systems is working in a slightly deficient manner.
“I assess whether one may be working more or less than it needs to be,” he said.
The goal, Bartell said, is to bring those systems back into proper balance through acupuncture.
7 Stones’ patients, he said, range in age from kindergarten to 98.
Bartell said he treats patients with a wide range of medical concerns, including chronic pain, headache and migraines, women’s health issues, digestive and neurological disorders, arthritis, fertility, fatigue and stress.
“(Acupuncture) changes people’s lives,” he said. “I have treated patients who have suffered from chronic issues for more than 30 years (who have tried numerous other options) before coming to acupuncture. We have been able to almost completely alleviate their issue… I am seeing many fertility patients, as well as migraine headache sufferers.”
Bartell said he also treats several patients who suffer from allergies.
He said he has noticed a shift in patient needs since the pandemic.
“During COVID-19, I was treating many patients for anxiety and depression,” he said.
The procedure, Bartell said, is not painful if one goes to a properly trained and experienced acupuncturist.
“It’s vital patients see a trained, licensed acupuncturist,” he said.
The hesitancy he most often gets, Bartell said, is “a fear of pain.”
“90-95% of the needles I put in, patients do not feel anything other than a mosquito bite (sensation),” he said. “You can fit two to three dozen acupuncture needles into the tip of a standard hypodermic needle. That’s how small they are.”
Bartell said he feels blessed to share acupuncture with the Cascade and Sheboygan community.
“I grew up in the area,” he said. “I left and spent seven years in Stevens Point then 15 years in Colorado and now have brought everything I learned back to my home.”
To learn more about 7 Stones Acupuncture and Wellness, visit 7stonesacupuncture.com
