SugarPill Apothecary, a common sense approach to well being

We are familiar with the use of sugar pills as placebos. The Latin origin of placebo means “I shall be acceptable, or pleasing,” and SugarPill in Langley is an accepting and pleasing place to visit.

The store’s owner Karyn Schwartz offers a calm and listening presence, born from more than 35 years practicing social work, natural medicine, massage and herbology.

At SugarPill, Karyn may suggest certain teas for a certain condition, bitters to aid digestion, recommend premade remedies, or mix a custom tincture, as she did for me and my ongoing gut issues: Gentian and Lemon Balm.

When asked why she named her apothecary SugarPill, Karyn wrote in a text: “It’s a kind of a tongue in cheek reference to the homeopathic medicine I trained in formally for many years. And mysterious enough to lure people in.”

SugarPill found its origins on Capitol Hill in Seattle, where Karyn ran her own store from 2010 until 2022. Now in her fifties, the calm woman—who wears remarkable eyeglasses and creative clothes that suit her personality—has run a unique apothecary in Langley the past two years.

Karyn’s interest in herbs began when she was a teen living in Ithaca NY. Later, she lived in community, as part of a co-op in Seattle.

“We lived in a collective house and I learned to be part of things,” Karyn recalled. “When moving to Seattle—I was actually on my way to San Francisco—I landed well. It was people I lived with AND worked with that gave me the instant sense of belonging here. I met amazing people in Seattle, and became involved with projects that were meaningful.”

From late 1989 until now, Karyn’s life was immersed in learning about natural remedies, massage therapy and learning what our body tells us, if we can only pay attention to it.

In Seattle, Karyn worked as an herbalist at Seattle’s famous apothecary, Tenzing Momo at Pikes Market, during the 90s. Tenzing Momo is a renown apothecary, perfumery and gift store, which has been in business more than 40 years. She also was part of the opening team at Rainbow Natural Remedies on 15th Ave. E. in Seattle, where she built up its herbal program. She worked there for 13 years between Tenzing Momo and opening SugarPill Seattle.

While we chatted, Karyn mentioned working in a number of fields, and found the main thread in each of them was in helping people take care of themselves and enriching their own resilience.

Her work ranged from cook/baker at a vegan cafe to catering, to social work, to writing for two years as a “natural lifestyle and healing content strategist” with Microsoft Studios–Microsoft’s branded entertainment media subdivision. She watched as friends lost their lives to AIDS during the 80s and 90s. Curious about the mind/body connection, Karyn enrolled in massage school in 1991.

“I learned massage as a way to get out of social work,” Karyn said. “I learned more about nutrition in massage school than my sister did in medical school! I thought, if we knew how our bodies worked, we’d take care of them differently.”

In tandem with learning about natural healthcare, Karyn has studied with well known educators in herbology. She spent summers working with herb farmers when she first moved to Seattle.

“I’ve had the incredible good fortune to have studied with people who’ve written books,” Karyn said. “Most of the people I learned the most from are not folks anyone would recognize. They, like me, are people quietly taking care of their communities. This is really important to me, because while I have definitely met and worked with a lot of well known people, my main mentors are not the people with renown. I’ve met those who’ve taken their knowledge and made it accessible. I’m not a teacher in the formal sense, but here (at my store) I can give people what I know.”

Creating a gracious space where people can walk in and ask questions about their health, Karyn greets visitors, listens to what they say, and offers advice about what might help, and suggests remedies.

While we were talking, a woman walked in mentioning her partner’s health, and asked for a refill of a previous tincture. Karyn greeted the woman and gave her the benefit of her full attention.

“How’s her general health?” Karyn inquired, familiar with the patient’s symptoms.

“Kinda woozy,” the woman replied.

“I’d recommend bone broth with a little acid,” Karyn advised. “Cook it a couple of hours. Add a sheet of kombu seaweed for extra protein. Does she take supplements?”

The woman answered yes, and Karyn advised that the supplements might be the cause of the patient’s current gut irritation.

That being said, Karyn returned to the back of the store when the interaction was completed. While she was engaged, I admired the interior’s antique cases and drawers and tables containing teas, chocolates, bath salts, aromatherapy, tinctures and candles. Uplifting music provided a score for the moment, as I looked out the window, which faces Saratoga Passage.

We talked of Western medicine and when a patient is seen, is given medicine and the expectation is the symptom goes away. With naturopathy, Karyn explained, the patient participates in creating health.

“What you have to do is not sexy—put the phone down, go outside, eat vegetables,” Karyn noted. “Herbs aren’t drugs, they won’t make everything better on their own. They’re allies.”

Typically folks go into an office and pay for the service. At SugarPill, Karyn said, “…you don’t pay for the conversation. I encourage people to take charge of their well being and come back for more. I can set people up to go to that next place. I’m the place to go in between appointments. I’m here to remind you to take care of yourself. We don’t all have the money to go to private practitioners. If I can support the work you’re doing, I can hold space for you for the basics—you have to do the work.”

Her work is “…creating an invisible safety net that we could all be part of. It’s my job to share what I’ve learned with others.”

She noticed the safety net of community support during the COVID pandemic.

“I feel it deeply, that safety net,” Karyn said. “I marvel at the way people learned with COVID, when we had to care of each other. Mutual aid sprung up like a new concept, and it was commodified–it’s a new name for what people have always done—we’re in this together. We care for each other.”

Before moving to Langley, Karyn studied what other similar stores offered for sale. She tailored her store’s inventory so that it did not overlap others.

She said she is glad to be out of the city, and able to live here with her partner.

We talked about interviews she’s given.

“One of my favorite interviews, was with an author, who wanted to base a character on me, for better or worse. The woman was great. We spent a couple of hours talking. She wrote a fun novel, and asked me to read the galleys. Turns out I was a murderer!”

Infamous though she may be in a mystery novel, Karen Schwartz, has found her niche in Langley at SugarPill.

SugarPill is located at 214 1st Street in Langley.  It is open at 11 AM every day but Mondays and Tuesdays. Visit its website. Phone: 206-322-7455.