5 Life-Changing Japanese Wellness Strategies With Apothékary Founder Shizu Okusa

If Japan has been calling to you, you’re far from alone. As record-high tourism numbers show, the country’s allure is growing—especially for Americans enchanted by its rich traditions, deep spirituality, and stunning natural beauty. According to Shizu Okusa, the founder of wellness brand Apothékary, one of the most compelling aspects of Japan’s culture is how well-being is woven into the fabric of everyday life. “The Great Exhaustion is a real thing,” says Okusa, speaking of the term coined by writer and computer science professor Cal Newport, describing the crushing weight of hustle culture. “People are tired of the rat race in the U.S., where there is a constant focus on overwork, the need to improve, and growth, often resulting in constant burnout. In Japan, the culture is much more balanced and more focused on how to live a good life versus work to live.”

Okusa’s journey—from a high-stress finance career to discovering her true purpose and balance—perfectly reflects this contrast. Born and raised in Vancouver, she is the daughter of Japanese immigrants who left Japan after World War II in search of a better life for their children. Growing up, her father was a Japanese garden landscaper and Kendo teacher, while her mother was an artist and potter. “Nature, mindfulness, and creativity have always been a big part of my life, but my parents wanted a more stable life for me,” Okusa says. “They asked me to become a doctor, lawyer, or accountant. And, of course, I did; I chose finance.”

But two years into her career as a proprietary trader and investor at Goldman Sachs, Okusa realized that it wasn’t her ten-shoku, which means life’s purpose in Japanese. She coped with the stress and pressures of her job by leaning into the Japanese wellness strategies she grew up with—namely, nature as medicine—and it inspired her to co-found her first company, a cold-pressed juice brand called Jrink. After seven successful years, she sold her company in 2019 and used that money to start Apothékary, which delivers natural herbal remedies through tinctures and powders.

Through her work, Okusa is on a mission to help others achieve holistic health by blending the Japanese traditions she grew up with and the new practices she’s uncovered while deepening her connection to her heritage. Here, Okusa walks us through myriad ways to imbue your everyday with Japanese wellness strategies certain to help you feel centered, calm, and recharged.

Embrace Herbal Medicine

In Japan, Kampo is a centuries-old medicine that utilizes herbal remedies to treat various ailments and restore total-body balance. As opposed to quick-fix Western remedies like antibiotics and over-the-counter drugs, plant medicine works to address the root causes of illness rather than just alleviating symptoms. Think: a cup of ginger tea instead of popping a Tums tablet or an Ashwagandha supplement instead of a coffee or Red Bull. But Okusa will be the first to acknowledge that herbs, which can have a strong or bitter taste, aren’t always the most palpable. That was the driving force behind Apothékary’s herbal tinctures.

“What we’ve aimed to do is make the way to consume herbs easier by just dropping them under your tongue or adding them to water or adding them to a beverage that you may already be consuming,” explains Okusa. She adds that people trying to cut down on alcohol or coffee can find a natural swap in Apothékary's Wine Down, a red wine-inspired tincture blended with L-theanine, California poppy, and tart cherry to promote relaxation and recharging rest, or Take the Edge Off, which is laced with passionflower and skullcap that helps de-stress and ease tension naturally.

Find Moments of Mindfulness

Zen, the Japanese school of Buddhism, is woven into the way of life in Japan. But while meditation is a central pillar of Zen, that doesn’t mean all Japanese people begin their day with a quiet, hour-long zazen (that’s Japanese for seated meditation). It’s more that they’re mindful in their everyday actions, emphasizes Okusa.

“In Japan, everything is an active meditation,” she says. This is true especially when you consider pace; whether going for a walk, cleaning your home, or eating a meal, focusing on appreciating the moment and paying attention to your senses. “Japan is slow, while America is fast and efficient,” says Okusa. This also extends to many traditional activities with special meaning, like Ikebana, the art of flower arranging, which is considered a meditative practice in its slowness and attention to detail.

So, to start, Okusa suggests slowing down and incorporating active meditation into your daily routines to cultivate a deeper sense of presence. If you’d like to take things further with seated meditation, ease into it—just five minutes at a time. She references advice she got from Toryo Ito, a monk and Vice Abbot at Ryosokuin Temple in Kyoto. “A daily meditation practice is something where, if everything else fails, you have the control and the ability to sit with yourself and pause. Even if it’s just five minutes, you know you did at least one thing for yourself.”

Ritualize Morning Matcha

In Japan, tea ceremonies have profound cultural significance. Called chanoyu, a traditional tea ceremony revolves around preparing and drinking matcha, emphasizing the mindful appreciation of each step, including whisking the matcha, the presentation of the tea, and the communal experience of sipping it together. “Traditionally, tea ceremonies go for five hours; everything is very meticulous and timed,” says Okusa. “You’re wearing traditional clothing, you’re bowing, you’re moving in a way that’s really art; it’s a dance.” While these kinds of tea ceremonies aren’t a daily ritual, you can still incorporate their spirit regularly by making a morning cup of matcha, a healthier alternative to coffee with L-Theanine and less caffeine. She says that using a chasen, a traditional Japanese matcha whisk, and a matcha bowl is a great way to nod toward the spirit of the traditional Japanese ceremony.

Slowing down is also important. “In Japan, drinking matcha is ceremonial, while in the U.S., people guzzle it down like an espresso shot,” says Okusa. “It’s not just for caffeination or energy; it’s for connection.” So whether you’re preparing matcha at home with Apothékary’s Slay All Day, an adaptogenic matcha powder with chlorella and Siberian ginseng for steady energy with no crash, or getting a matcha latte from a café, try to pause, concentrate on every step of its creation, and savor every sip, appreciating the flavor and aromas. If you’re alone, you can transform it into a moment of mindful meditation, or if you’re with someone, you can connect more deeply.

Connect With Nature

“Nature is incorporated in everything we do,” says Okusa, noting Japanese culture’s emphasis on the elements of fire, water, air, and earth. Offering a connection with all of these things is forest bathing or shinrin-yoku, the Japanese practice of immersing yourself in nature to feed the senses, de-stress (a 2007 study found that forest therapy reduces cortisol), and restore balance.

“Consuming and embracing fresh oxygen from positive sources is vital so you can be a source of oxygen to yourself and to others around you,” she says. Okusa also highlights the rejuvenating power of disconnecting from technology and losing oneself in the outdoors. “We’re always prioritizing digital connection, always glued to our phones and laptop, but in the forest, where there isn’t wifi, you’re able to feel more connected to yourself,” she says.

For those living in rural areas, the proximity to forests, hills, or bodies of water offers an advantage, making it easier to connect with nature. In contrast, urban dwellers may need to venture farther to find green spaces. However, they can still enjoy the benefits of nature by spending time in public parks and community gardens or just getting outside and walking, no matter what your surroundings look like. “Movement is medicine,” says Okusa. “There is an increased trend of walking and not running–and forest bathing is just a natural extension of that trend, but immersed in nature.”

Find Beauty in Your Flaws

It’s no secret that Japanese culture places great emphasis on meticulousness and attention to detail. But that doesn’t mean perfection is the end-all. Take, for example, the Japanese art form of kintsugi, wherein broken pottery is repaired with lacquer and powdered gold, highlighting the imperfections instead of masking them. “I believe Kintsugi has become more popular in the U.S. because of the focus on embracing imperfection, our flaws, and brokenness,” says Okusa. Whether it’s the weight of our personal flaws, the regret of a mistake, or the grief of losing a relationship, we often feel shattered—yet through the process of healing, we can rebuild ourselves stronger than before. And this mindset can be applied profoundly to our daily lives. “The moment you repair your heart and embrace your flaws and brokenness, you're more resilient, have more context and skills, and know what you’re really looking for,” says Okusa. “There is beauty in our imperfections and past learnings; they make us a whole human.”

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