About The Hearth

The Hearth opened in response to a gap in mental health services for individuals who are not eligible for non-profit or government-funded services, and/or have private insurance with such high deductibles that they would end up paying 100% of therapy costs, sometimes for the full year. With average fees of $150-$300 per session, this simply is not an option for most of us.

About Mia

I became a social worker because I was drawn to its view of people as existing within contexts - geographical, financial, political, racial, cultural, structural - which must be accounted for in order for mental health treatment to be effective. Social work’s tenet of and emphasis on social justice as a guiding principle speaks to my personal value system, and while the field is wildly imperfect and certainly does not always function in accordance with the philosophy it espouses, it’s what brought me here, and it’s what I commit myself to every day.

I earned my Master of Social Work from Loyola University Chicago with a background in therapy for individuals with past or current experiences of intimate partner and sexual violence; those with with moderate and severe psychiatric diagnoses; individuals in psychiatric crisis including psychosis, self-harm, and suicidality; persons experiencing personality disorders; and those with obsessive-compulsive disorders. I will be offering services for minor attracted persons shortly.

I consider engagement with new information and perspectives to be as much a part of my job as providing therapy; as such, along with being certified in the treatment of personality disorders I am extensively trained in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Exposure Response Prevention (ERP). I hold additional certificates in Inference-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, clinical interventions for binge-eating and anorexic disorders (I am not an eating disorder therapist), and assessment and interventions for minor attracted persons.

Outside of work I do floral design, am learning American Sign Language, take on maybe one intensive embroidery project and then refuse to think about another one for a year, and get overly engaged with the news. My five-year-old niece is my favorite person, and my current podcast recommendation is Gladiator: Aaron Hernandez and Football Inc. (I’ve listened twice.) I have a collection of pink sneakers, don’t understand how Love Is Blind is still a thing (no judgement! I just feel like we’ve answered the question by now), and look forward to learning more about you.

Common Questions

  • The Hearth is entirely sliding-scale, which means fees are negotiated and based on what a client can comfortably afford and I am able to accommodate. Several factors are taken into consideration when we establish a fee, and they can be revisited if or when needed.

    BIPOC clients are prioritized for lowest fee spots to account for systemic inequities.

  • I will be accepting Medicaid/Medi-Cal shortly and will have openings for a limited number of clients with that insurance. If you think you might be interested in working together, please reach out and I will let you know the statuses of those spots.

  • Sessions are 50-55 minutes and are structured based on a client’s goals and needs. Sometimes sessions are fully free-association, other times we may establish more of a format or routine. Therapy can be a challenging space, and with that in mind I am intentional in creating an atmosphere where you can let go and be yourself. I am very informal, am a direct communicator, and while the work is serious, I value humor and and a conversational approach to sessions.

  • I only provide services if I believe that what I can offer is what someone might need. I do not work with people whose goals or diagnoses are outside of my scope of practice: I would not work with someone whose goal is to recover from a substance use disorder, for example, as I am not trained in that area and therefore would not provide them with the best help. I do not work with people who do not want to receive therapy, even if they are minors. If a parent brings their child to therapy, and that child absolutely does not want to be there, I will not force them to engage as this has the potential to cause harm. (If your child has severe psychiatric needs and is opposed to services, there are ways to access them and times when that may be appropriate, but this would not be the case for weekly, virtual, outpatient therapy.)

  • It depends! For some people, it’s easier to engage in sometimes heavy conversation in a familiar space; it can be a comfort to have your own music in the background, a favorite blanket on you, or your pet around. Telehealth is also great for people with long or hectic school/work hours, caregivers, people with chronic pain/health conditions, or people who encounter barriers to in-person services due to mobility, ability, or transportation concerns. In-person sessions may be more effective for others, such as people who tend to feel less motivated at home and more energized and focused when out of the house, people with moderate to severe ADD/ADHD or other concentration-impacting disorders, and young children. Ultimately, it is a matter of personal preference.

  • I am not in-network with private insurance at this time. In transparency, I wrestle with whether to begin accepting private insurance plans and am happy to discuss the differences in service requirements for therapy that is and is not covered by insurance during a free consultation. My goal is not to persuade or dissuade you from pursuing a therapist that accepts your policy - you pay a lot of money for it - but to offer information on how your plan may shape your experience.

  • I am licensed in California and Idaho under the name Miriam Zucker.

    CA: 111479

    ID: 5071369