Get to know Dr. Stoecker and read through our Q/A where she shares about her role at Table Health and some areas of her personal and professional life.
Q. What is your area of medical expertise?
A. I specialize in women’s health, hormones, GI issues, mental wellness, weight loss and detoxification.
Q. What is your role at Table Health?
A. I am a direct primary care provider, and in addition, I perform functional medicine assessments, as well as bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.
Q. What are some of the symptoms you commonly treat?
A. I have been treating a lot of fatigue, weight gain, anxiety, depression, and GI symptoms lately.
Q. How do you treat and care for your patients?
A. The first thing I do is listen to their story because that is the most important piece of the puzzle. This helps me figure out how I can help them on their path to wellness, while keeping in mind that some people need to take baby steps to get there. It’s a partnership and we’re both working toward the same goal.
Q. How do your patients respond to functional medicine?
A. Most are happy to feel heard for the first time and have a plan to help them toward their wellness goals. Sometimes it can be overwhelming and that’s when I meet the patient where they are at and suggest smaller changes to start with.
Q. What makes your approach to health different?
A. I truly consider each person as a whole and what they need to heal, rather than just prescribe medications to mask symptoms. I listen carefully and ask a lot of questions.
Q. What health trends excite you the most?
A. Lately, I’ve been diving deep into optimizing the transition to menopause and I’m excited that it is being talked about more. There is a lot more discussion about the importance of gut health as well, which is a huge interest of mine.
Q. Who do you follow in the medical, health/wellness community? Why?
A. I read Kara Fitzgerald’s blog and listen to her podcasts when I have a long commute. She is current with the latest nutraceutical and microbiome research, as well as an Institute for Functional Medicine instructor. Lately, I’ve been following Dr. Stacy Sims who posts a lot of information about ideal exercise and nutrition for perimenopausal women.
Q. How do you spend your free time?
A. I love to garden: native plants as well as vegetables, fruits, and herbs. Cooking is a passion of mine, though it’s not as exciting at the end of a long work day. In the summer, you can find me on the sand volleyball courts twice a week. And lately, I’ve been doing strength training with my 18-year-old daughter 3 days a week.
Q. Who inspires you?
A. I’m not sure it’s a who, as much as a what. I am inspired when I am in nature, especially near the water or in a garden.
Q. What book did you last read?
A. I recently read “Eight Dates: Essential Conversations for a Lifetime of Love” by John Gottman and Julie Schwartz Gottman. My husband and I both read it to deepen our relationship as we transition into empty nesters in the near future. We both thought it provoked some great conversations.
Q. What do you love about the Traverse City area?
A. There are so many things! I love the focus on outdoor recreation and the environment, and the involvement of the community in making this a great place to live. I love the amazing restaurants and of course, the water and the wine.
Q. Why did you choose this profession?
A. I actually started my career as a computer programmer, which was not fulfilling for me at all. I realized that I really wanted to help people and after much soul-searching, decided medicine was the best way for me to do that.