Wellness in Portland
From community acupuncture clinics to naturopathic medicine to mental health support, Portland's wellness ecosystem is unusually broad and often community-driven.
Portland has a long tradition of alternative and integrative health — the city has more naturopathic doctors per capita than almost anywhere in the country, and institutions like National University of Natural Medicine (formerly NCNM) have trained practitioners here since 1956. Community acupuncture clinics, sliding-scale therapy practices, and neighborhood herbalists operate alongside conventional care throughout the city.
The mental health infrastructure, while strained by the city's housing and addiction crises, includes organizations doing serious work: Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare provides integrated mental health and addiction services on a sliding scale. Outside In serves homeless youth with health, housing, and support services.
Portland's beauty industry includes a strong independent salon and barbershop culture, with many businesses that serve communities often underrepresented in mainstream beauty — including shops specializing in natural Black hair care, gender-affirming services, and accessible facilities. Good PDX will feature these businesses explicitly.
A directory of wellness providers — gyms, studios, therapists, salons, and health practitioners — is coming. If you own a wellness business in Portland, join Good PDX to get listed.