Meet Stephanie Colantonio | Holistic Reproductive Health Physician, Herbalist & Mentor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Stephanie Colantonio and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Stephanie, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I was in a major moment of transition and pause when I first started thinking about starting my own practice as a reality. It felt foreign. We don’t learn about the business side of medicine during our formal training during school or residency. At the beginning of the COVID pandemic I took time off from work to move to Madrid to be with my partner at that time. During this period of rest and quiet, I spent a lot of time in nature and reflection. I cannot emphasize enough how important it was to have this time to slow down. So many ideas and creation came from spaces of doing nothing. A major theme was my life’s work. I acknowledged that I felt misaligned with what I was doing in conventional medicine.

So I thought about who I wanted to serve and what made my spirit light up. I loved working with young people with concerns around reproductive health. At my conventional medicine job, when patients came in with menstrual cycle issues, the only tool I had in my toolbox was hormonal contraception. I wanted to give patients a full spectrum of options to approach their concerns. I also had my own challenging journey with contraception and abortion that was important to me. During training, I started seeing an acupuncturist and working with plant medicine to support my own healing. I learned more about the energy body. I studied herbalism and mindfulness. This combination of passions and experiences led me to develop a practice focused on holistic reproductive health. I wanted to offer a service that I wish I had when I was younger – a common story in this line of work.

What should our readers know about your business?
I try to integrate the rigor of science in conventional medicine with the tender approaches from the Wise Woman Tradition of Healing – the lineage of my herbalism training. This way of healing focuses on nourishing the body – with food, plants, rest, joy, community, and so on. It views the individual as their own healer, who knows their body the best. My job is to support people in listening to their bodies and offering guidance. There is no hierarchy, no finger pointing and telling someone what they must and must not do. My relationship with my patients and clients is very much a partnership.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Anyone close to me knows that I will always take them to nature. There are so many beautiful spaces in and around LA to hike, forage, forest bathe, swim. I love to take friends to my local, sacred spaces, as well as day trips to places like Ojai. Huntington Gardens and The Getty Museum are favorites. A few years ago my dear friend introduced me to the Olympic Korean Spa, which is wonderful for day of relaxation. On the west side we’d eat at Gjusta and Dudley Market. On the east side, we’ll have a drink at Cafe Stella and eat at Kismet, Ototo, and Mariscos 4 Vientos… there are so many good ones.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have so much gratitude for the teachers, mentors, and healers along my journey. The seed of possibility for my practice emerged from my direct work with the plants and the practitioners who facilitated and supported those experiences, starting with a group called Hermanosis. My first acupuncturist in Los Angeles, Irina Tsoy, L.Ac., opened my mind to whole systems of healing and inspired me to pursue them myself. Marysia Miernowska, my herbalism teacher, showed me ways to incorporate the spiritual into the clinical, which influences how I work with people and plants everyday. Mindfulness meditation teachers Tara Brach, Jack Kornfield, and my mentor Genevieve Tregor supported my growth as a mindfulness teacher, and my development as a general clinician. There are too many other teachers and authors to name here who have deeply influenced my path, though I have shared them on my website!

Website: colantoniomd.com

Instagram: @colantoniomd

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanie-colantonio/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/stephanie-colantonio-md-los-angeles