A grounded space for meaningful change
I’m Monica Nevarez, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in California. After graduating from college, I found myself really struggling — living with a level of anxiety I assumed I would simply have to accept for the rest of my life. I didn’t believe support existed for what I was going through. But I found the change I didn’t think was possible, and it opened my world back up. The tools I learned in therapy and the new perspectives I gained helped me change the way I view the world and how I interact with it. I’ve been committed to offering that same possibility to others ever since.
My training in sociology gave me a lasting lens — I see people within the systems, from family to community to culture, that shape them, and I carry that perspective into every clinical relationship. I began my career in community mental health, working across a broad spectrum of needs and life circumstances, which gave me a deep sense of humility that shapes the way I meet every client exactly where they are.
In 2021, I found my calling. I became immersed in the world of eating disorder treatment — and I was captivated. Food is something we are meant to engage with every single day, yet our relationships with it can become so vastly complicated and painful. I am moved by the reality that very few people go entirely unaffected by some form of disordered eating or food anxiety — it exists on a wide spectrum, and the impact it has on a person’s life can range from quietly limiting to all-consuming. That complexity is what draws me to this work. I went on to gain experience across the full continuum of care — outpatient, intensive outpatient, partial hospitalization, and residential treatment — and I brought that breadth into my private practice.
In my private practice, I work exclusively with individual adults via telehealth throughout California. The people who tend to find their way here are capable, high-functioning people — often the ones everyone else leans on — whose lives look like they work, and mostly do. But something feels off: anxiety around food, rigid rules about eating that quietly take up enormous space, a low hum of worry that won’t quiet on its own. I hope to be a safety net for those who may not realize they’re struggling. Eating disorders can be insidious, and many people don’t believe they’re “sick enough” to need help. I want to reach people before they fall too deep — and if someone ever needs more support than outpatient therapy can offer, I will help them find and connect with a higher level of care.
My approach is eclectic and client-centered, tailored to your history, your pace, and your life. I’m not here to hand you a roadmap — I’m here to walk alongside you as we figure out together what fits, what no longer serves you, and how to move toward the life you actually want. It’s all held by the belief this practice is named for: nothing is wrong with you, and sometimes our perceptions simply need recalibrating.
