About Dr. Daniel – Functional Medicine SF

I KNEW FROM AN EARLY AGE, WHEN I BEGAN TENDING TO MY DOLLS AND TEDDY BEARS, RESCUING BABY ANIMALS AND NURSING THEM BACK TO HEALTH, AND LEADING THE NEIGHBORHOOD FIRST AID STATION, THAT I WOULD FIND MY PATH TO BECOMING A PHYSICIAN. AFTER ATTENDING UNDERGRAD AT THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA, AND THEN PURSUING A MASTERS IN HEALTHCARE ETHICS AT RUSH UNIVERSITY IN CHICAGO, I LATER ACCIDENTALLY FOUND MYSELF IN A 3 YEAR STINT AT A PRESTIGIOUS SILICON VALLEY HEDGE FUND. IT WAS THERE I WAS GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO DIVE DEEP INTO EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, A TOPIC I ALREADY LOVED, WHICH SERVED AS THE BASIS OF THE INVESTMENT DECISIONS WE MADE AND SHIFTED MY PERSPECTIVE IN UNDERSTANDING THE ROOT OF HUMAN DISEASE.

I co-authored a series of medical journal articles about evolutionary medicine and wrote a book about food that emerged from the research I did into the food industry called Low-Stress Food: Eat Your Way to a Low-Stress Life. During that project, I applied to only one medical school and was accepted to attend Touro University, College of Osteopathic Medicine where I went on to begin my formal medical training in 2007. Perfectly situated in the progressive culture of the Bay Area and known for its intellectual and innovative demographic, but also at the leading edge of integrative medicine and holistic health, Touro offered an osteopathic medical education that was grounded in Western medical science, but rich with explorations into the interconnectedness of human health and the natural laws by which we are governed, all things I had previously studied in the field of evolutionary biology. Throughout medical school, I had the great fortune of receiving years of integrative and functional medicine mentorship from Sara Gottfried, MD, Rick Shames, MD, Deborah Metzger, MD, Jacqueline Chan, DO and Michelle Veneziano, DO, all of whom guided me in deepening my understanding and confirmed the truths I had come to understand about the origins of human disease. My post-graduate training was in the intense, inner-city LA landscape at USC’s Family Medicine Program, which deepened my medical knowledge and prepared me to start practice. Everything I had experienced up to that point, especially seeing a broken system in action, provided the inspiration to venture out from the prescribed convention of hospital walls, managed care and academic institutions into creating my own medical practice. This was first established in late 2012 as Intuitive Women’s Wellness, a women’s health, fertility and hormone support practice, which later evolved to include environmental and longevity medicine, into the expanded version of what it is now, Functional Medicine SF. Now, nearly 12 years in, working with my patients still remains one of my favorite parts of my day, and I am excited to be your partner in health and vitality at Functional Medicine SF. When not in the office seeing patients, I am involved in professional pursuits in the consumer healthcare world, psychedelic medicine and longevity. I’ve consulted for various start-ups like Ava Women, https://www.avawomen.com, helped promote functional medicine through EvoMed and the Functional Forum (www.functionalforum.com) and consulted on several stealth projects in the psychedelic medicine space. I’ve been a speaker for several docuseries including the Autoimmune Secrets, Mark Hyman’s Fat Summit 2 and have been a speaker at UCSF, Gensler, Earth Day SF and others.

I’m also a mother to a thriving teen, shepherding her into adulthood, cheering her on in Club Volleyball and thrilled that she’s finally interested in the quality and healthiness of her food choices and staying hydrated. In my time off, I like spending time with my friends and family, including my 2 pups, keeping up a regular yoga practice, hosting farm to table dinner parties, and traveling for intellectual pursuits and for pleasure. As a recovering achievement addict, I understand what effort it takes to stay balanced, while still pursuing all that life has to offer.
Dr. Stephanie is a member of the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM.org) and has completed the Applying Functional Medicine in Clinical Practice seminar in 2014, which is when she first became a mentor to other physicians in the practice of functional medicine, something she still loves and does regularly. She is also a member of the International Society of Environmentally Acquired Illness (ISEAI.org) and regularly engages on cases with her tight knit functional medicine colleague group, who are the most compassionate, knowledgeable and high integrity doctors she’s ever had the privilege to know. Dr. Stephanie serves as a preceptor to medical students, residents and fellows of UCSF’s Osher Center and as an instructor at Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine. She is a member of Summit Series, a community of diverse makers and holistic leaders, and a founding member of the Esalen Visionary Women’s Leadership Council. She has studied with the Institute of the Sacred Stream, Dr. Neil Nathan’s Complex Medicine Think Tank, Dr. Sara Gottfried’s Get Vital, Stay Vital Practitioner Mastermind training program,the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M), the American College for the Advancement of Medicine (ACAM), the Center for Education and Development of Clinical Homeopathy and is currently in a program on the intersection of trauma and spirituality with Thomas Huebl, PhD.

Dr Stephanie Daniel

Dr Stephanie Daniel