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ABOUT





Meet the Doctor Who

demystifies medicine,


to fearlessly advocate for their health

Where it all started

Finding healing in self- discovery and self-advocacy

Growing up in poverty without health or dental insurance, Dr. Liza Swedarsky was all too familiar with a healthcare system that seemed to have no place for her—a system that often disregards the personal experiences of its patients. Early encounters with doctors and healthcare providers left her feeling overlooked and disempowered in managing health challenges, and what she now calls dis-ease in the mind or body.




Fortunately, this sense of vulnerability began to shift when she enrolled at Northwestern University as a first-generation college student. For the first time, Dr. Liza had access to health insurance. It felt good to be prepared. Then, in her third year of medical school, she was diagnosed with the autoimmune condition, Crohn’s disease.

This news compelled her to rethink how she interacted with the world—from her dietary habits, relationships, self-care practices, and living environment to her methods of managing stress. She discovered her answers to self-healing lived beyond the pill or the practice of medicine.

Dr. Liza knew she had to do more than manage her diagnosis… she had to reclaim her life.

She discovered that living healthily is a conscious choice.


She became her own advocate. She sought out holistic healing modalities that went beyond traditional medicine. She turned to mindfulness practices, spiritual care, meditation, intentional eating, restorative sleep, and a sharper focus on where she lived, worked, and nurtured relationships. Dr. Liza has been symptom-free for twenty-three years.

Her experience with the transformative power of conscious lifestyle changes and self-advocacy inspired her to make a broader impact by extending these empowerment strategies to others.




Her professional career

A leader in holistic care

Dr. Liza built her professional career with an unwavering commitment to empowering women’s holistic health. Currently, she is a gynecologist in Boston at one of the world’s preeminent women’s hospitals. In addition, she is a respected clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Liza’s career is deeply rooted in serving Boston’s neighborhoods and community health centers. Since 2006, she has been on a mission to provide access to quality gynecologic care, outpatient procedures, and a comprehensive range of surgical services including laparoscopic and robotic surgery. Her efforts have earned her a place among Boston’s Top Doctors for seven consecutive years, a testament to her skill, dedication, and the trust she has built in the community.






A champion for women’s health

The credentials

Founder and Chief Executive Officer

of Health Vows and Embracing Black

Combined Residency Training Program

in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Massachusetts General and Brigham and Women’s Hospitals

Doctorate in Medicine

University of Illinois College of Medicine-Chicago

Diplomate

of the American Board of Obstetrics & Gynecology

Fellow

American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists Fellowship in Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery and Chronic Pelvic Pain

Specialist

in outpatient gynecology, laparoscopic & robotic surgery and chronic pelvic pain

26 years of clinical experience

consciously facilitating healing and safe spaces for women

Faculty member

in the Division of Urban Health at Brigham and Women’s and Faulkner Hospitals

Clinical instructor

at Harvard Medical School

Physical and Mental Health Co-Chair

of the Boston Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.

Content Creator and Facilitator

of the Women’s Health Early Detection Series in Breast Health and Cervical Cancer Prevention

Advocate for women’s health access

in Boston neighborhoods and community health centers since 2006

Currently Pursuing Certification

in Ayurveda and Pranic Healing and a degree at the University of Metaphysics in the Art of Spiritual Healing and Metaphysical Sciences

The awards

2017-2025

Boston Top Doctor

2025

Harvard Radcliffe Institute Exploratory Seminar Grant

Imagining a new vision of health and wellness for Black women in the 21st century” (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026

2025

Ambassador American Cancer Society Voices of Black Women

2020

Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers District Statewide Reinvestment Program’s Behavioral Health Special Projects Grant.

2021

Brigham Care Redesign Incubator Start Up Program (BCRISP)

aimed to show the Health Vows Program works to decrease health inequities and disparities by targeting individual behavior changes. 

2017

Women’s Leadership Program

Brigham and Women’s Hospital

2015

Minority Faculty Career Development Award Brigham and Women’s Hospital

2015

Eleanor and Miles Shore Fellowship Award- Harvard Medical School



    Through her clinical work, Dr. Liza observed a recurring pattern:

    Women often seek immediate relief through medication, yet their health challenges are deeply intertwined with daily stress and lifestyle factors—elements that traditional medicine cannot fully address.

    This realization prompted Dr. Liza to reimagine women’s healthcare.





    Empowering women to reclaim their lives

    In 2014, Dr. Liza launched Health Vows, an international program designed to lead women in a mindful, proactive approach to their health, relationships, bodies, and daily lives by making a commitment to seven vows to self for better health.

    Over seven transformative weeks, the Health Vows program guides women through seven key vows rooted in self-advocacy. Research shows these vows can increase mindfulness and impact women’s healthcare choices and behaviors, resulting in improved health outcomes, preventive screening participation, screening guidelines compliance, early disease detection, and heightened health literacy.

    Health Vows equips women to actively engage in the patient-doctor relationship and become confident self-advocates, make informed healthcare choices, prioritize disease prevention, and live with greater agency.

    The Health Vows Program received an award from the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers District Statewide Reinvestment Program’s Behavioral Health Special Projects Grant and Brigham and Women’s Hospital Care Redesign Incubator Start-Up Program Grant.

    At the heart of Dr. Liza’s vision is a world where…

    Healing is holistic and lives beyond a prescription. Medicine is demystified. Women everywhere are given the tools to identify the root causes of dis-ease in the mind and body and grasp the profound impacts of stress, sleep, diet, relationships, social connections, sadness, and joy.

    Living healthily is focused on overall well-being. And most importantly, patients stand as equals with their physicians–not as clients but as partners seeking holistic healing, together…

    Living Healthily is a Choice. Change begins first in the mind and is set forth with intention and practice.

    Visit HealthVows.org


    The doctor and the spiritual practitioner

    Bridging Faith, Spiritual Practice, and Health

    Dr. Liza is a lifelong seeker. She became a licensed spiritual practitioner recognizing the healing power of prayer, spiritual community, and faith. Dr. Liza attests her value system to give, serve, grow, and live healthily and abundantly was established during her childhood experiences in churches and Sunday School that emphasize universal spiritual principles such as freedom, choice, oneness and power. 

    Despite the appearance of challenges, through faith, she believed her life and resources would look different in adulthood. Her lived experiences demonstrate how thought patterns and belief systems can manifest and impact one’s health. She recognizes spiritual practices direct the mind toward hope, change, and infinite possibility.   





    Dr. Liza pioneers an innovative approach to health that beautifully intertwines science and spirituality.


    Dr. Liza regularly partners with pastors, churches, spiritual communities and houses of faith, and presents at conferences offering powerful workshops, keynotes, and retreats where women can explore the profound connection between their spiritual beliefs and health-ultimately leading to greater resilience and healing that transcends the body. 

    Dr. Liza is currently a student at the University of Metaphysics pursuing a degree in the Art of Spiritual Healing and Metaphysical Sciences. She is also pursuing certification in Ayurveda and  Pranic Healing.  

    LEARN MORE




    A vision for the future

    Now, through her groundbreaking initiative Embracing Black, Dr. Liza is bringing together influential allies to ignite the largest movement of fearless, educated Black women health advocates in the world. 

    The healthcare system continues to struggle and health disparities affecting Black and other BIPOC women persist. Embracing Black mobilizes black women to be the solution to a systemic centuries-old problem.

    Black women will learn to take charge of their health through in-person workshops, conferences, and safe healing circles- all centered around evidence-based health education and shared storytelling inspiring and empowering the mind, body, and spirit.

    Dr. Liza’s vision is clear: to empower Black women to deepen their understanding of disease prevention, embrace resilience, and recognize their worth in living vibrant, healthy lives.

    GOALS

    To support Black Women to be Fearless Self-Advocates
    To provide evidence-based education to Black women that informs them about the leading causes of chronic disease to encourage preventive screening and increase longevity while building conscious healing communities.
    To decrease fear among Black women pursing healthcare by identifying root causes, belief systems and re-framing fear.

    To increase health literacy through interactive educational experiences.

    To create safe spaces for interactive dialogue and to promote conscious change that inspires vitality, healthy living and supports longevity.
    To explore the direct impacts the social determinants of health have on the mental, emotional, and physical well-being of Black Women.
    To encourage, promote, and facilitate the embodiment of mindfulness and spiritual practices as forms of self-care, self-discovery, self-realization, and self-advocacy. 

    Health and longevity

    with us

    Ignite your health journey