Soft Medicine Sanctuary is a haven for those seeking mindfulness in Sebastopol

Inviting tea lounge. Inclusive yoga studio. Vibrant event center. Eclectic art gallery. Organic wellness cafe. It’s all here.

Sebastopol’s newest community gathering spot is all these things and much, much more.

The destination, Soft Medicine Sanctuary, opened last September in the historic Main Street building where the Dhyana Center — a similar mindfulness and wellness-oriented destination — thrived for 25 years. Since then, Soft Medicine Sanctuary has attracted a fervent following, and consistently delivers programming that West County residents adore.

“Yes, it’s a tea house and cafe and yoga studio, but really Soft Medicine is a root vibration of what Sebastopol has always been,” said Jonathan Pinkston, one of five co-founders of the space. “It functions as a beacon for people to anchor into that vibration.”

They’re getting it

Soft Medicine Sanctuary is a bit of a phoenix, rising from the ashes of the Dhyana Center. The former facility closed during the pandemic, and when Sonoma County reopened in the summer of 2021, Pinkston and a group of about 20 others came together to share visions for what a new iteration of wellness center might look like. Their dream: To recreate a physical community gathering space to facilitate self-inquiry, education, health and wellness.

Ultimately, a group of about seven or eight individuals committed to making this vision a reality. They whittled down ideas. They signed a new lease. They oversaw the build out.

Soft Medicine Sanctuary as it exists today was born in September 2022.

“It's been such a beautiful community effort getting Soft Medicine through our first year," said co-owner Kate Doherty.

“I don’t think it would have happened in the same way if we hadn’t had time to workshop it,” said Pinkston, who grew up in east Santa Rosa and lived in Occidental for 20 years. He said the result of that teamwork is “a mix of hippie Mecca and the woodsy artist bohemian culture of West County.”

Pinkston added the name is a double entendre. On one hand, it is a blatant rejection of all the “hard” medicine in the world today like Zoloft, Abilify, Resperidone and more. On the other hand, it is a reference to a former anti-capitalist endeavor some of the founders engineered at the farmers’ market in Occidental — a free booth where guests were invited to sit on old couches, sip tea for a while and relax or connect with each other.

“When we named this place, a lot of people said, ‘What does it mean?’ and ‘It’s so confusing,’” Pinkston said. “Now people come and they spend time in the space and they say, ‘I didn’t get it back then but I totally get it now.’”

Meditation, yoga, tea

There are so many aspects to Soft Medicine Sanctuary, visitors must make a conscious effort to explore and experience everything.

Newcomers naturally happen upon the cafe and tea lounge first; this is an inviting living room-style space with hanging plants, comfy couches and live edge tables. Patrons order at the bar; the food menu comprises salads, kava, hummus and kimchi. There also are seasonal charcuterie boards, as well as locally made bone broths. All items are organic and sourced from local farms within 200 miles of the cafe.

“I've always felt Sonoma County should be dripping with restaurants that support truly organic farm-to-table meals, from the greens to the oils,” Doherty said. “We're just doing our part to be that for Sebastopol. Soft Medicine takes a further step by bridging the world of healthy food with fun and entertainment.”

What’s more, all dishes are based on Ayurvedic principles to provide balance. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, Ayurveda is a natural system of medicine, originated in India more than 3,000 years ago. The term is derived from the Sanskrit words ayur (life) and veda (science or knowledge). The practice aims to find balance between the body, mind, spirit and the environment through a special diet, herbal remedies, massage therapy, yoga and meditation.

Drinks at Soft Medicine Sanctuary are more eclectic. The menu spans traditions such as Amazonian herbalism, European folk medicine, Native herbalism and New Age functional medicine. This includes cold elixirs, hot elixirs, herbal shots, herbal teas and Jun, fermented honey that’s served cold. There’s also an entire menu of Gong Fu Cha, a Chinese tea tradition with small pots and small cups.

According to co-owner Buckminster Zaphod Barrett, these teas are meant to be enjoyed over the course of hours.

“Tea is at its core about relationship,” he said in a recent voice memo recorded during a trip to China. “In China, the way that people engage with each other, it’s completely influenced by tea. They’re almost one in the same, in the sense that in China the culture is very much based on the collective and helping each other and putting others ahead of ourselves as a meaning to bring everyone forward.”

Toward the back of the cafe sits a small retail shop and the “Hall of Impressions,” a gallery exhibiting work from local artists. Three of this month’s featured artists are Marie de la Paz, Je Noodle also known as Jennaé R. Bennett, and Taylor Rock.

There’s a meditation room, a yoga studio and an upstairs loft — depending on the day and month, these spaces are the backdrop for a robust calendar of yoga, breathwork, dance, fitness and meditation classes. Yoga classes include kundalini yoga, anahata flow, candlelit yoga, power vinyasa, yin yoga, hatha vinyasa flow and more.

Many of these classes cost $20 apiece and some are either free or available at sliding scale, meaning whatever participants can pay. Yoga memberships also are available, ranging from $50-$400. Each tier includes different offerings like the number of classes that can be taken per month, access to the bathhouse and percentage off items at the cafe.

'Soft Medicine holds space’

Already, Soft Medicine Sancuary has made quite an impact on the local community.

On a recent Friday afternoon, the cafe was buzzing with different pairs of customers, many chatting and connecting over tea, and several on first dates. Many of these duos enjoyed individual tea drinks while others were sharing small pots of tea in the Gong Fu Cha style.

Locals also say the hub has “transformed” the local nightlife scene, with events in the loft or the event studio across the hallway from the cafe on the first floor.

Last week alone, for instance, Soft Medicine Sanctuary was scheduled to host a workshop to explore the different facets of masculinity, a workshop to help aspiring jewelers understand how to use copper wire as a framework for turning crystals into jewelry, a healing group to help participants manage the lingering effects of family dysfunction and a meditation gathering that comprised breathwork, energy healing and a soothing sound bath.

Jeffrey Whitebear, who lives in Guerneville, said the sanctuary makes him whole.

“I see Soft Medicine as a place that calls local people together to cocreate a new dominant paradigm that honors all parts of our evolving selves, the Earth and all beings,” he said. “It’s a place for everyone in the community to feel welcomed and held regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or economic class.”

Wren Huxley, from Sebastopol, agreed. Huxley noted that she visits the space several times a week for a meal, for yoga and simply to connect with friends.

“Soft Medicine holds space for our community to connect and share their gifts,” Huxley said. “I know it is a place I can go to see familiar faces and meet new friends as well. I always leave there more uplifted when I arrived.”

What’s next

After its first anniversary in September, Soft Medicine Sanctuary isn’t planning any major changes to the program.

Perhaps the biggest change came this summer, when the team behind the sanctuary spun off yoga and dance classes in the upstairs loft to operate under the purview of a separate nonprofit entity named Anahata Yoga & Sound. That organization, which will operate with Soft Medicine Sanctuary, is under the leadership of Kathryn Robinson, one of the founders. Anahata Yoga & Sound will have its first public fundraiser in November.

Pinkston and the rest of the founders are exploring other ways to expand their reach. Whitebear, who is 66, mentioned he is considering becoming an ambassador to connect with older (over 55) members of the local community.

Beyond this, Pinkston said the sanctuary largely will continue doing what it’s done to this point, adding more programs as demand necessitates.

“When we look at this place and we look at what’s happening with all the changes around Sebastopol, those of us who founded Soft Medicine feel that we have to hold the roots,” he said. “People who have been holding those roots for the last 30 years are all retiring. It’s up to keep the vibrations going from this point forward.”