Natalie M. Fontanetta, PMHNP-BC, CEO & Founder
Hi, I’m Natalie!
I am a board-certified Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner specializing in the treatment of a wide variety of mental health disorders with over 18 years of nursing experience.
Personal Experience
My passion for helping those struggling with their mental health started with my own experience after the birth of my third daughter when I suffered from severe and debilitating post-partum depression and anxiety. After months of suffering, I finally reached out to a psychiatrist at the urging of my family.
After finally getting the help I so desperately needed in the form of both therapy and medication, I went on to make a full recovery, the thoughts that had tormented me for months had finally quieted down and the joy in life that I had once experienced was back.
Professional Expertise
A mere six months following my recovery from postpartum depression, the world shut down with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic where social isolation, school closures, loss of jobs and the deaths of loved ones resulted in countless people feeling alone, scared and hanging on to their sanity by a thread. As a veteran ER nurse working on the front lines, I found that many people seeking emergency psychiatric services felt abandoned by the medical community that promised to help them, often not being able to see their providers in a timely manner and having lapses in the medication or therapy they relied on for stability.
It was this experience that was the final push I needed to take my 17 years of bedside nursing experience and channeling it into addressing the mental health needs of my community in a more meaningful way.
When not at work, I moonlight as a professional chef, driver, housekeeper and tutor (aka I’m a mom to three amazing daughters), and enjoy spending time with my husband and children, reading, football games, wine tasting and soaking up the sun in this beautiful city!
Dr. Brian Elledge, D.O., Collaborating Psychiatrist
We are happy to have Dr. Brian Elledge as our collaborating psychiatrist at Moonlight Psychiatry, as he brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to our practice. He and Natalie first began their collaborative relationship working together in a high acuity outpatient mental health clinic in North County San Diego.
Dr. Elledge is a board-certified psychiatrist who completed his undergraduate training at Brigham Young University in Utah before attending A.T. Still University in Arizona. He then completed his psychiatric residency in Las Vegas at the University of Nevada School of Medicine. With over 13 years of experience working in psychiatry, Dr. Elledge has worked in many different settings, including multiple correctional facilities, rural clinics and outpatient practices in both Nevada and California.
In addition to his extensive medical training, Dr. Elledge is also certified as a Master Psychopharmacologist with Distinction through the Neuroscience Education Institute (NEI). This designation exemplifies advanced knowledge and skills in the study and practice of psychopharmacology.
In his spare time, he enjoys traveling and spending time with his family.
Education & Training
In addition to my rigorous graduate studies at Gonzaga University, I've also completed post-graduate training in perinatal mood and anxiety disorders through world renowned institutions and leaders in women’s mental health including the inaugural cohort of the Nurse Practitioner Masterclass in Reproductive Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and am currently in the process of receiving my Perinatal Mental Health Certification through Postpartum Support International.
My work experience in this field includes time spent in an outpatient county mental health clinic treating individuals with chronic and severe psychiatric disorders such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and substance use disorders. My work at this clinic allowed me the opportunity to give back to my community by serving those who may had limited access to mental health care services.