Who We Are
Our Mission
At Pacific Mindscape, we provide compassionate, patient-centered, holistic mental health care, utilizing a full toolbox of evidence-based therapies from classic psychiatric medication to integrative non-pharmacological interventions. In addition to mood and anxiety disorders, our areas of expertise include women's mental health, professional burnout, sexual psychiatry, men's mental health, heartbreak, and palliative psychiatry. Whether addressing emotional struggles such as loneliness, life transitions, or relationship challenges, we strive to offer personalized and transformative support. Focusing on wholeness, we provide a uniquely personalized approach that honors the distinct needs of each patient, fostering healing and personal growth in a supportive environment.
Louisa R. Steiger, MD, MPH
Louisa R. Steiger, MD entered medicine to support individuals facing challenges across all aspects of life. Her experience as a Fulbrighter in Germany highlighted the significant impact of social and cultural factors on well-being. With over 15 years of expertise in behavioral health, including leadership roles at UC San Diego and Palomar Health—where she was named Physician of the Year in 2024—Dr. Steiger combines clinical excellence with a public health perspective. She is particularly interested in two areas: supporting professionals dealing with burnout and depression, and addressing women’s mental health needs at every life stage. Dr. Steiger is deeply committed to helping professionals navigate the challenges of high-stress environments, recognizing that burnout and depression can profoundly impact both personal and professional spheres. Drawing on her extensive experience, she works to create tailored approaches that prioritize resilience, recovery, and sustainable well-being. For women, she provides comprehensive care during all their life’s journeys, addressing the intersection of mental, physical, and emotional health. Dr. Steiger specializes in offering guidance and care that empower women to thrive in every phase of life. Her combined expertise in clinical practice and public health allows her to address these challenges with a holistic and compassionate perspective. As a founder of Pacific Mindscape, Dr. Steiger is bringing her vision to life by creating a welcoming space where patients find support, understanding, and resources tailored to their individual journeys. Her practice combines evidence-based psychiatric care with complementary therapies to treat complex mental health conditions, and she emphasizes education, self-discovery, and empowerment as central elements of healing. -Education and Training: -Fulbright Grant, Universitäts Freiburg, Germany -The University of Toledo, MD -Northwest Ohio Consortium for Public Health, MPH -University of California San Diego Psychiatry Residency Song that Speaks to Her Soul: You’re Not Alone, Allison Russell Languages spoken: English, German Hobbies: Reading, crafting, hiking, making googly eyes at dogs
Kristyn Pellecchia, PMHNP
Kristyn Pellechia, PMHNP, embarked on her journey in psychiatry at San Diego Hospice as an NP in 2011, where she was drawn to the profound suffering experienced by patients facing life-limiting illnesses. It became clear to her that her calling was to support those feeling lonely, scared, abandoned, or grieving, providing a warm and compassionate presence as they navigated their paths toward the best possible lives. Her experience as a palliative psychiatry fellow at San Diego Hospice honed her clinical skills in assessing and treating emotional distress such as depression and anxiety in patients confronting serious illnesses and potential shortened lifespans. For Kristyn, this work embodies the essence of psychiatry, rooted in the Greek word “psyche,” which means breath, soul, and mind. With the founding of Pacific Mindscape, she is excited to implement a holistic approach to healing—one that integrates the soul, mind, and body. Alongside her specialized training, Kristyn has held multiple roles as a nurse practitioner delivering psychiatric care. Her experience spans maternal mental health clinics, HIV clinics serving traumatized individuals, nursing homes, and hospitals, where she has worked in both a consult liaison role and as the provider on an acute behavioral health unit. Combining expertise with compassion, she believes in the importance of collaboration—partnering with patients, fellow healers, healthcare experts, and the loved ones that patients hold dear. Beyond her clinical work, Kristyn is recognized as an authority in her field. She has contributed a chapter to a book on palliative care and has designed and taught a palliative care curriculum at the UCR School of Medicine, as well as developed online modules for physicians interested in mental health in palliative care. In establishing Pacific Mindscape, Kristyn aims to empower patients to envision, create, and embrace their best lives, regardless of their diagnosis or prognosis. She aspires to cultivate a space where individuals can access expert, high-quality, innovative, and compassionate care tailored to their unique needs. What sparks joy for her: breathing the air of a redwood forest, watching the sun rise over the mountains on a cloudy day, floating over waves feet first, reading inspired words, moving her body Footloose-style. Favorite quote: “man is not destroyed by suffering: he is destroyed by suffering without meaning.” Victor Frankl Education and Training: -Loyola Marymount University -Bachelor of Science, Biology -University of Washington, MMA -University of San Diego, RN -California State University, Long Beach, MSN, PMHNP-BC -San Diego Hospice and the Institute for Palliative Medicine, Fellowship, -Palliative Psychiatry ASKP3, Ketamine Certification
Our Team
Ildiko Kovacs, MD
Ildiko Kovacs, MD was born in Budapest, Hungary where she received her medical degree from Semmelweis Medical University. After moving to the United States she worked for 8 years as a Neurobiology postdoctoral scientist at the University of Arizona, Stanford University and The Scripps Research Institute. She completed her internship in Neurology at St. Louis University then her residency in Psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego. She has been Board Certified since 2006 by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. After finishing her residency training, she remained on the clinical faculty at UCSD for 20 years. She applied her integrative, multidimensional approach to patient care while working at the UCSD HIV clinic with complex medical and psychiatric patients. She completed a multidisciplinary training in Sexual Medicine at Oxford University, UK, and started the Sexual Psychiatry Clinic at UC San Diego in 2016. There, she practiced in collaboration with various specialists to help patients with a broad range of sexual disorders, focusing on psychiatric and medical treatment optimization, brief and focused sex therapy, as well as hormonal treatments. She has extensive experience with IV and IM ketamine treatment for psychiatric disorders, frequently in patients who had significant sexual side effects from traditional antidepressants. During her clinical career at the University she developed a specialized interest in patients who present with distress due to romantic breakup, feeling emotionally abandoned, and sometimes profound feelings of worthlessness. The Heartbreak Clinic at Pacific Mindscape will, under Dr. Kovac’s guidance, help guide patients find their path to resolution and wholeness after a romantic breakup.
Jon Frey
Jon began his time exploring the spiritual and psychological impacts on wellness while completing his Master of Divinity at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. It was there that he completed an internship in pediatric chaplaincy through Children’s Hospital of Orange County. Shortly thereafter, he began his clinical pastoral education at Sharp Healthcare in San Diego, California. During his residency, he took special interests in behavioral health and palliative care. Following the completion of his chaplain residency, Jon worked as a staff chaplain at Sharp Grossmont Hospital. There, he facilitated spirituality groups in the locked behavioral health unit, advanced the role of patient spiritual preferences in advanced illness management and planning, supported patients and staff throughout major crises, as well as served on the bioethics team after receiving his bioethics certification from the University of Washington. Jon currently works with Sharp HospiceCare and Transitions, where he continues to provide spiritual guidance and support to patients and family members impacted by life altering illnesses. Jon also remains diligent in furthering psychedelic assisted therapies as a way to mitigate existential distress and promote wholeness throughout the illness journey. He completed the Psychedelic Assisted Therapies Certification from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado and remains a strong advocate for the use of these sacred plant medicines for those suffering from life limiting illnesses. Jon is a compassionate and dedicated spiritual care provider and chaplain who brings a unique blend of perennial wisdom traditions and contemporary spiritual practices to support patients and families facing the end of life. With a deep commitment to tending to the soul, he seeks to create a sacred space for reflection, healing, and connection in the midst of suffering. He is open to exploring the use of consciousness-altering and sacred plant medicines as a means of facilitating profound spiritual experiences and insights for the sake of increasing inner peace amidst life’s most perplexing thresholds. Working to collaborate closely with interdisciplinary teams, Jon ensures that spiritual care is woven into the fabric of palliative care treatment. He advocates for the importance of addressing spiritual and existential needs as integral to human centered care, recognizing that the journey of dying is as mysterious as the journey of living. He is committed to decreasing suffering, advocating passionately for a more well-rounded sense of wellness and care at the end of life. Education: Masters of Divinity, Fuller Theological Seminary Bioethics Certification, University of Washington Clinical Pastoral Education, Sharp Healthcare Certificate in Psychedelic Assisted Therapies, Naropa University Experience: Pediatric Chaplaincy Internship, Children’s Hospital of Orange County Behavioral Health Chaplaincy Internship, Mesa Vista Hospital, San Diego, CA Clinical Chaplain, Sharp Grossmont Hospital Spiritual Care Counselor, Sharp Hospice and Transitions Hobbies: Wrestling his three and five year old boys on the living room floor. Breathing air at high altitudes. Rhythm. Toiling in the garden. Cherishing his beloved wife, Kim.
Cari Gill, RN, BS
Cari Gill, RN, BS, has been a RN since 1997. She currently works as a Holistic Nurse doing Healing Touch with patients in the ICU, Infusion Center, and on Medical/Surgical floors at Scripps Mercy Hospital. She is the first nurse to be hired to do exclusively Healing Touch for Scripps Mercy! She started her career in cardiac rehabilitation at Community East Hospital in Indianapolis, IN. Throughout her career as a RN and Exercise Physiologist specializing in Cardiology, she always looked for ways to integrate her passion for energy healing and holistic education for her patients. In 2020 she completed a Nurse Coaching Certification program. Soon after she discovered Healing Touch, an energy healing that is supported by the American Holistic Nurses Association (AHNA). For Cari, it was one of life’s greatest gifts when her passion for energy healing and her 25 year career as a RN came together as one.
Lauren Cruz
Lauren C. is the office assistant at Pacific Mindscape, where she leads the patient scheduling, social media and administrative duties to support the client engagement, community growth and office workflow. With over 5 years of experience in the medical field, Lauren specializes in clerical work and social engagement. Lauren holds a B.S in Biological Sciences from CSU San Marcos. Outside of work, she enjoys indoor cycling and volunteering with San Diegan youth.
Join Our Team
At Pacific Mindscape, we envision a world where every clinician and staff member thrives in a supportive, nurturing, and collaborative environment. We are committed to fostering a space where learning, curiosity, and inquiry flourish, driving innovation in mental health care. Please email admin@pacificmindscape.com to connect with us.