Our Story

Before opening the clinic, Elizabeth Sailer had spent years in private Chinese Medicine practice and working in more exclusive integrative medicine settings where care was often out of reach for many people. At one point, she realized that as a single mother, she wouldn't have been able to afford the kind of care she was providing. That moment became a turning point.

Along with fellow acupuncturist Whitney Schatz, she opened Petaluma Community Acupuncture on a shoestring with donated furniture and a very basic pharmacy. The clinic quickly flourished, with patients coming from Petaluma and across the North Bay for expert treatment in a peaceful, nourishing setting that makes ongoing care more possible.

Over time, the clinic has evolved in response to what patients need and ask for, and we now offer cupping, herbal medicine, and private treatments in addition to community-style acupuncture. Our collaborative approach to your health care gives you the best of everything.

The apothecary has also grown from its simple beginnings and become a mainstay of the community. Open to both patients and the public, it offers herbs, supplements, and other products that our practitioners regularly recommend, with an emphasis on small-batch, local producers. It’s an extension of the same idea that shaped the clinic from the beginning: thoughtful, effective care grounded in experience.

What began as an idea has grown into a staple of the North Bay; a healing sanctuary where people come to feel better, often after trying many other approaches, and to work over time toward meaningful changes in their health with the support of their practitioners.