Remembering Janet Levatin

The world has lost a kind, compassionate, brilliant doctor

Jennifer Margulis

Jun 21, 2025

I’m smad. Smad = sad and mad. Mostly just sad. Baffled too.

On June 9, 2025, my friend and colleague, Janet Levatin, died.

She was 71 years old.

Janet, dear Janet, how did this happen? You weren’t supposed to die.

Dr. Janet Levatin, M.D., who was best known to her patients as Dr. Janet, touched thousands of people’s lives.

She was smart, kind, funny, hard-working, self-deprecatory, and an amazing listener.

Instead of giving “doctor’s orders,” telling her patients what to do, or insisting that she knew exactly what they needed, she saw herself as part of their health and wellness team. She was the ultimate teacher-healer, working with her patients to figure out the solutions together.

As one mama remembers: “My heart is just broken over this news about Dr Janet. She was my children's Dr.

“When my son was born with kidney issues, (severe hydronephrosis) she was instrumental in educating and empowering me as a young mother with a baby with a birth defect. We read the Physicians’ Desk Reference to learn what I could do to care for this unique child.

“She encouraged me to breastfeed, when the nutritionist discouraged me. She helped with natural homeopathic remedies that took the place of the strong meds the hospital wanted to put my infant on after his surgeries. Throughout her stay here in Massachusetts, she was a powerful presence. And the best Dr. Educator and Empowerer. She was a loving caring mother and a blessed soul. Rafael, my deepest condolences to you and your family for the loss of your greatest champion. Rest in power peace and Paradise Dr Janet.”

Dr. Janet was buried in a biodegradable casket in a cemetery in Ohio on June 18, 2025. Photo via Stephanie Stock, president and PR chair of Ohio Advocates for Medical Freedom, from a public post on Facebook.

Janet contacted me in November of 2023. We ran in the same circles: we were both dedicated to helping families affected by autism; we were both Jews who opposed circumcision; we were both outspoken vaccine safety advocates; and we both worked every day, albeit in different ways, to protect the rights of parents to make medical choices for their children.

We had an exciting Zoom call at the end of November in 2023.

Janet explained she was writing a book. She told me she had two books in her, and wasn’t sure which one to work on first. One was a compendium of the knowledge and experience she’d accumulated during more than forty years of practicing medicine. The other was a memoir.

She engaged my services to help her write the first book. I was her editor, accountability mentor, and cheerleader. She was such a pleasure to work with. I always found myself with my hand on my heart when we had our meetings via Zoom. Her big heartedness, openness, and struggles with self-doubt touched me. She was so smart and so self-critical.

Her kindness towards others, thoughtfulness, and caring made me ache.

In a good way.

I was jealous of her patients. I found myself wishing that when my children were little we’d had a medical doctor like her in our corner.

As part of the process of deciding whether we are a good match, I ask all perspective editing clients to write a brief biography in the third person.

Here’s what she wrote:

“Dr. Janet Levatin graduated from the George Washington University School of Medicine in 1982, and completed a pediatric internship and residency at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in 1986. Since then, she has provided cutting-edge holistic medical care for children and adults, first in Boston, Massachusetts and then, for the past 12 years, in northeast Ohio.

“She offers virtual assessments and treatment plans for selected, motivated adults; and in-person holistic health services for infants and children, including pressure-free well baby and child physicals, and individualized treatment plans for a variety of acute and chronic medical conditions, usually without the use of pharmaceuticals.

“Dr. Janet’s treatment plans include homeopathy, herbs, nutritional advice, gentle detoxification protocols, nutrigenomics, and homeo-prophylaxis (an injection-free, non-toxic alternative to conventional vaccines).

“She is passionate about true prevention and finding natural solutions for health problems whenever possible.

“Dr. Janet has always supported and championed freedom of choice in medical decision making and has spoken out about the toxicity of pharmaceuticals, including vaccines, for many years.

“Due to her unique, eclectic skillset and commitment to true holistic care, Dr. Janet has longstanding, loyal clients from a number of states and countries.”

A green plate of stones

When I asked her how she could hold herself to a new standard of excellence, Janet told me about the small green plate of stones she kept on the desk in her office.

The words on these stones inspired her.

Here’s some of what Janet wrote:

Choice:

I have a choice to apply myself fully, to make a difference in my own life and to make a difference in the lives of others. It is up to me, as no one else can do what I need to do. I am making a choice to do more, to do better, to excel, and to access the best help I need in these efforts.

Change:

I can and will change from having dysfunctional habits (laziness, procrastination, making excuses) to having more functional habits (industry diligence, timeliness, proactiveness, consistency, dedication, perseverance, persistence).

Concentration:

I can and will summon and use my powers of concentration to focus on my work and not allow distractions to get me off track. Even though I am older, that does not mean I can’t concentrate effectively and complete this project.

Confidence:

I can and will summon the confidence and self-esteem to know that I can do what I set out to do and that my work will be valuable to others.

Courage:

I can and will summon the courage to venture into new endeavors, publicly express what might will viewed by some as controversial material, and risk rejection (temporary failure) along the way.

Connection:

I can and will foster my connection to myself, my higher purpose, and my writing.

By working regularly and consistently on my books, I will maintain my ongoing connection, my productive flow, and the continuity needed for a cohesive book. I can and will also develop the connections I need with those who can best help me achieve my goals.

Creativity:

I will consistently call upon my creativity.

Competence:

I am competent. I just need to make the choice to exercise my competence by concentrating and having the courage, confidence and consistency to proceed with my work.

Clarity:

I can and will strive for clarity of purpose and clarity of expression so my books can be the best they can be.

Compassion:

I can and will hold compassion for myself, for those helping me, and for my future readers. This value will inform my work. We are all human beings trying to find our way in this world and being compassionate towards the situations of others is an important part of that.

You can read her obituary on the Busch Cares website.

I read a book to my kids when they were younger called Gregor the Overlander. In it, Gregor's baby sister, Boots, falls through a vent in the laundry room of their Manhattan apartment building.

Gregor, whose father disappeared, goes through the vent to find her. He discovers an entire world, called the Underland.

This monarchy is peopled with translucent-skinned silver-haired humans, giant cockroaches (“crawlers”), rats (“gnawers”), bat (“fliers”), and other creatures.

In this world, Underlanders and giant bats become bonded for life, sworn to protect each other. The human in a bonded pair is transported through the Underland tunnels by their bat. When Underlanders take their leave of each other they don’t say goodbye. “Fly you high,” they say instead.

Fly you high, Janet Levatin the Overlander. You will be sorely missed. You are already.

Vibrant Life

Discussion about this post