Four Filipino Women in Wellness Making Their Mark

This Women’s Month, Filipina founders and practitioners share how their work in the wellness industry is empowering women around the country.

For those who celebrate, Women’s Month is a period to reflect on women’s achievements and contributions in all forms, past and present, big and small. But in the world of wellness, it is something practiced every day, in service of helping women feel stronger and more confident in their minds and bodies. From hormonal health to sustainable period care to Filipino-led beauty, a new wave of women is redefining wellness not as a luxury, but as an essential foundation for supporting overall wellbeing.

In this list, four women, Dr. Sheree Bondoc, Alexa Jocom, Rosalina Tan, and Mary Jane Ong, offer perspectives shaped by both studied expertise and lived experience. 

Dr. Sheree Bondoc

In women’s health, Dr. Sheree Bondoc has built her work around what is often dismissed or misunderstood. As an OB-GYN and hormone specialist, and Medical Director of The Core Clinic, she focuses on the role hormones play in shaping how women function day to day, from energy levels to mental clarity. In a field where many symptoms are normalized or dismissed, her approach reframes health as something crucial to a woman’s ability to fully participate in her own life.

“What made me do what I do today is it might sound corny, but I wanted to empower women and empower them through their health,” she says. Her perspective is shaped by what she sees in her patients. “Most women now are suffering. They are not able to do their best in their work or in their line of work because of hormones and symptoms.” Rather than accepting this as inevitable, she sees it as something that can be addressed and improved. “If women are healthy, they’re able to do better in what they would want to do.”

As conversations around women’s health continue to evolve, she points to the growing awareness among women themselves, particularly in understanding conditions like PCOS and the role of lifestyle in overall wellbeing. For her, education remains essential. “Information is a very vital tool for us, and as I’ve said, it’s not only in the field of hormones, but also in other aspects, we should not stop learning. We should not stop searching for answers.”

At its core, her work is about removing barriers, especially the invisible ones. “Women are better than men, to be very honest.”

Alexa Jocom

Similar to Dr. Bondoc, Alexa Jocom is helping reconstruct how Filipino women approach the often considered taboo subject of period care, reproductive health, and self-awareness. As the founder of a biodegradable period pad brand, Halia, her work sits at the intersection of sustainability and women’s health, but more importantly, it challenges the silence and stigma that have long surrounded menstruation.

For Jocom, empowerment begins with visibility and reflection. “I think it’s very important when we inspire other women, because they also see themselves in us. So we’re kind of like a template of what they aspire to be. And I think it goes both ways. It’s like a mirror, because when you see them, you also see yourself in them.” This idea of reflection informs how she approaches both her business and her role as a founder.

Her objective is built on changing the norm. “My mission when I started Halia was to make better period care the standard, not the alternative.” But beyond the product itself, she is interested in how women understand their bodies. “It’s really impacting the way Filipino women think about their health in terms of reproductive health, in terms of menstrual health, and it’s just being more aware of your body, your emotions, your mental health.”

It’s a perspective on strength that embraces the duality of the female brain. “As women, I think our strength is really overcoming these challenges through empathy, through kindness, through fearlessness. I think you have to be strong but also be soft.”

Rosalina Tan

Before Pili Ani became a globally recognized Filipino skincare brand, Rosalina Tan’s work began with advocacy and a deep commitment to sustainability. Rooted in an organic lifestyle that encompasses health, environment, and fair trade, her early efforts focused on reducing waste and supporting local communities. Her journey took a defining turn with the native pili tree. “The whole tree is actually a gold mine,” she says, recalling how her research into discarded pili pulp led her into years of experimentation. What began as a simple question about waste gradually evolved into a larger understanding of value and opportunity.

However, it’s an internal desire to assist others that’s always been the driving force. “I cannot say no to farmers. I just want to help them not to throw away the pulp,” she says, looking back on the compassion that would later define Pili Ani. Even as the brand grew, that intention remained unchanged.

For Tan, Women’s Month is a recognition of what women already do every day. “Most women are multitasking. They are not only caring for the families, but they also help in the livelihood of the family,” she says, acknowledging both visible and invisible labor.

Her advice is rooted in originality. “Let us not be copycats. Let us innovate, innovate with our own, maybe with your own idea, or your hobby, or your passion.”

Mary Jane Ong

Mary Jane Ong’s work is the result of both maternal inheritance and passed-down values of intention. As the founder of Pili Ani, she has taken her mother Rosalina Tan’s advocacy and expanded it into a globally positioned Filipino brand, carrying forward a story rich in compassion while building a brand that speaks to an international audience.

For Ong, empowerment is something that grows when shared. “Being a woman, empowering a woman, is very vital, because it creates a ripple effect. Because if I can do it, what more you,” she says, emphasizing how confidence and possibility can extend beyond the individual.

Her relationship with her mother remains one of the most central to her identity. “Everything I do here right now is actually because of her. This is out of her love and compassion,” she says of her mother, whose influence continues to shape both the brand and her approach to leadership.

At the same time, she is clear about what it takes to build something sustainable. “Make sure you have a strategic plan. You should build a team, because you cannot do it yourself,” she advises, offering practical guidance grounded in experience.

She challenges the idea that women need to diminish themselves. “I always grew up loud. I mean, I’ve always been pretty loud. I can speak my mind,” she says, before adding simply, “I never really felt threatened in a man’s world. So just be ourselves.”