Therapin*y San Diego
Wellness is within & collective resiliency
Chapter Lead Contact Information:
Melissa Nefalar, LMFT, PMH-C
Email: admin@melissanefalar.com
Phone: (619) 356-3562
Instagram: @chulavistatherapy
Bio:
Melissa Nefalar, LMFT, PMH-C is second generation Filipino American and has been a licensed marriage and family therapist for over 10 years. Her expertise is looking at individual holistic wellness through the lens of a person's relationships and external systems, including family, society, or culture through a feminist, postmodern, neuroexperiential (brain-body based) approach. She is perinatal mental health certified and specializes in women's reproductive mental health care for the lifespan including pregnancy, fertility challenges, postpartum mental health, and peri/menopause. She is certified in Brainspotting as a way to encourage and support clients to tap into their inner resources and healing. She is passionate in working with issues focused on women, anxiety, and grief and loss. She is a former board member of Postpartum Support International's California Chapter and current Community Partnership Co-Chair for Postpartum Health Alliance (PHA) in San Diego.
Melissa was born and raised in San Diego, CA as the youngest child of four to Ilocano parents including a father who retired from 20 years of US Navy service and a mother who immigrated to the US without any support; she has lived experience and understands the intergenerational and cultural challenges that come with being brown in the United States. She received her undergraduate and post graduate education locally at UC San Diego and San Diego State University. She is married with three children and enjoys being a lifelong learner, traveler, and enjoys dancing as her favorite form of therapy.
What does Filipino healing and wellness look like to you?
Filipino healing and wellness looks like reducing shame (hiya) and stigma for seeking support and mental health services. Introducing or re-introducing ancestral healing and internal resources to our community for holistic and embodied care and growth.
Chapter Lead Contact Information:
Adeleine Conanan, PsyD
Email: hello@adeleinepsyd.com
Phone: (619) 436-4231
Instagram: @doctorateadeleine
Bio:
Dr. Adeleine Conanan is a licensed clinical psychologist who takes a holistic and collaborative approach to therapy. It can be challenging to share thoughts and emotions with others, so she strives to create a safe, genuine, and non-judgmental space to build trust in client-therapist relationships. Dr. Conanan works with her clients to address stressful life transitions, family or relationship issues, intergenerational trauma, and emotion dysregulation such as depression and anxiety. Having worked extensively with ethnically- and gender-diverse populations, she enjoys helping adults explore their sense of identity and find meaningful roles in their communities. While grounded in psychodynamic and attachment theory, Dr. Conanan integrates evidence-based treatments, such as Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), into her work. In addition to therapy, she conducts psychological evaluations for diagnostic clarification and effective treatment planning. Through a culturally-sensitive lens that incorporates understanding past relationships and behavioral patterns, Dr. Conanan’s goal is to help each client become aware of the obstacles hindering their personal growth and find a clear path forward in line with their own values.
What does Filipino healing and wellness look like to you?
To me, Filipino healing and wellness is a collective practice focused on resisting internalized and systemic oppression, creating positive relationships, and instilling hope and connection with our community.