February 28, 2023
Bethel, VT — On Bethel’s Main Street stands a rather unassuming brick-faced building tucked into the edge of a hillside, across the street from a pizza place I have yet to try, and not far from a great little sandwich shop & wine store that’s a treat to visit.
The building into which I walked yesterday afternoon houses a laundromat and, of great interest to me, a small office space called Main Street Wellness (MSW).
MSW is the daytime home of Ryan Crowley, a healer who practices Traditional Chinese Medicine, is a licensed acupuncturist, and offers osteopathy, Tui Na, and massage. To call Ryan a practitioner is an understatement. To me, he’s more of a magician, a healer who understands the vagaries of the human body and how it flows better than any other practitioner or health provider I’ve ever visited — and there have been more than a few.
Beyond offering me relief for my aching neck, the result of a bicycle accident four years back, Ryan also engages in deep conversation, opening himself up and revealing his own life experiences as a way to foster and engage his clients — as if he was also helping with their emotional and psychological travails. He knows stories matter in the grand scheme of life. People need to talk. Healing happens at many levels.
Ryan does offer acupuncture services to help with depression and anxiety, knowing well the myriad intersections between physical and mental wellness. He also treats: headaches and migraines, insomnia, menopause, irritable bowel syndrome, back pain (in my case, neck and shoulder pain), stress/tension, and, of course, anxiety and depression. Yet, it’s his powerful hands that seem to work real magic on me.
With osteopathic maneuvering of my head, neck, and shoulders after he’s treated me with acupuncture, I walked away slowly, feeling enlightened and lighter in spirit, as if my body had been simultaneously pushed and worked, yet resurrected and cleansed. The overall calm and quiet of Ryan’s nicely-appointed treatment space, replete with cork floor for foot comfort, cotton flannel sheets for winter warmth, deeply-satisfying eastern music, and our calm conversation about our lives, children, foods, and beliefs was just what I needed on this bleak winter day that threatened yet another snowstorm.
Each visit with Ryan is joyful, leading me farther down the path to commune with improved spiritual, emotional, and physical health. He’s my go-to guy, a healer who can get me back on track for another round of snow shoveling, XC skiing, or curling up with a good book knowing that relaxation is the mindfulness of wellbeing.
I also learned that Ryan’s wife offers facials, nail care, and makeup treatments on days when Ryan isn’t plying his craft. I’ll stick with Ryan for now. At $95 per visit, it’s well worth my body’s time, and my mind’s full focus on health. Learn more about Ryan and MSW at this link, or by clicking on his photo below.
Ryan is a fair bit older than the above photo from his website depicts. He’s had myriad life experiences that allow him to engage fully in conversation at many levels and on topics ranging from familial relationships, to current events, to food health, to naturopathic eastern remedies. I’ve found his knowledge of herbs and wild edibles to be fascinating and educational, and he understands the impact of their chemical makeup on physical and mental health from the perspective a true eastern healer.
Each time I visit, I expect to see an old, wizened, long-white-bearded man greet me, but, no, it’s Ryan, energetic, smiling and ready to help me feel my best with treatments of body and mind that leave me refreshed!
Dave Celone writes from a snowy hilltop in Sharon, VT where he’s feeling rejuvenated, relaxed, and renewed after a visit to Main Street Wellness in Bethel. You can reach Dave at djcelone@gmail.com, or by adding a comment below.