COMMUNITY

Brighten Your

Outlook

By TIM HIRSCH
of the Sun

Feeling stressed? A little down? If so, you don’t have to go far for a healthy dose of rejuvenation. There’s a new respite for those aching muscles and weary feelings right here in Pacific City.

Sanctuary 97135 Tanning & Wellness, which opened at the end of August, is the brainchild of Seaora Cuevas, owner of Ritual 97135 Coastal Soapery and Candelarium. Cuevas said the goal is to offer an outlet to fight depression and a sanctuary for visitors to come in for massages, girls’ weekends, getaways, and more.

Located at the Shops at the Village in downtown Pacific City (just north of the four-way stop on Brooten Road) the cozy atmosphere of Sanctuary 97135 is offering two core services — mid- to low-intensity UVB tanning beds and massage chairs. Its doors are open Thursday through Sunday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and by appointment on Mondays and Tuesdays. 

Two tanning rooms equipped with VIP Santa Barbara mid intensity beds await those eager to embrace the health benefits of the sun — even when the weather turns gray, damp and cold.

“These are not the beds that do the intense skin damage,” Cuevas says, who prefers the nomenclature of sun beds over tanning beds. “These are the beds that promote Vitamin D3, bond density, and fight skin issues. Getting five minutes a day of sunshine is a huge anti-depressant.”

The beds do offer a way to get a gradual tan, but she says that should be the secondary outcome.

“The primary outcome that you’re looking for is that instant shot of joy,” she added. “Little by little, people are coming to understand the benefits of 5 to 10 to 15 minutes of just getting into the sun — that’s why we’re calling them sun beds over tanning beds. It’s always sunning in here, so, if you’re depressed and having just one of those sad, gloomy, mulligan days, let’s get you in a sun bed (for an immediate lift in your attitude).”

The spa’s massage therapy chairs, too, have been a huge hit.

“Once you sit in them, they speak for themselves,” says Caroline Allen, studio specialist for Sanctuary 97135. “They’re wonderful. Most the of the people that have walked away from (the chairs) say they feel much more relaxed and less tense than when they walked in. That’s really our goal — to make sure that when people walk out, they feel much better. You get a whole overall body massage without having contact with a human being. With COVID, we thought this would be the way to go.”

Also on the menu is the availability to rent the space for small getaways such as girls’ weekends and bachelorette parties (up to eight people).

“We (hosted) events with some ladies and they just couldn’t get enough of the chairs,” recalls Allen.

To find out more about the services of the wellness spa, visit santuary97135.com — where you can book sessions in advance — or call 971-341-1983.

Photo by Tim Hirsch