Meet Dr. Lorena Monarrez

Why I built Mona Medical

I was born and raised in Salinas, the daughter of immigrant farm laborers who taught me what hard work, perseverance, and service look like. I graduated first in my class at Notre Dame High School, earned my undergraduate degree in Human Biology at Stanford with a focus in neuropsychology, received my medical degree from UCSF, and completed my emergency medicine residency at UCSF Fresno. A longstanding commitment to academic excellence carried me through each of those steps, and it still shapes how I practice: reading carefully, staying current, and holding every recommendation to the evidence.

For more than fifteen years, I have practiced in emergency departments across California, leading trauma teams and mentoring young physicians, and I continue to practice emergency medicine today. That work gave me judgment, perspective, and the ability to remain calm when the stakes are high. It also showed me what conventional medical settings often cannot give patients: enough time.

Many of the concerns that most affect how people feel and live do not fit neatly into a rushed visit. Changes in weight, hormones, energy, sexual health, skin, and overall well-being are often interconnected. I met patients who had carried these concerns for years without the time or space to tell their full story. And often it is the detail mentioned in passing, almost as an afterthought on the way out the door, that holds the key to a difficult diagnosis. That detail only surfaces when there is time to hear it.

My own experience with chronic illness and symptoms without simple answers, and raising an amazing neurodivergent child, have deepened my understanding of the individual experience of being a patient: what it feels like to search for help while still not feeling well, to advocate for someone you love, and to need a clinician who truly listens. In turn, those experiences have made me a better and more well-rounded physician and person. They are also part of the reason I started this practice: to create a space where we can take the time to listen and provide care through a multi-faceted approach. And they led me to look more closely at complementary approaches that may have a thoughtful place alongside traditional Western medicine.

I do not believe integrative care should replace necessary evaluation or treatments with well-established benefits. But when proven therapies are limited, have not helped, or are not a good fit for the individual, there can be a place for carefully considered complementary approaches and medically appropriate off-label uses of approved therapies. That requires sound clinical judgment and an honest conversation about what is known, what remains uncertain, and the potential benefits, risks, and alternatives.

I created Mona Medical to give patients the time, focus, and energy they deserve: time to listen, expertise to connect the pieces, and continuity to see a thoughtful plan through. Here, physician-led aesthetic medicine, hormone and sexual health, medical weight management, and concierge care come together around the individual. Concierge care, in particular, gives me the time to know my patients in a more meaningful way. The goal is not simply to address one symptom or number. It is to help each patient feel healthy, confident, and more like themselves.

Along the way, I became a Diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine and completed obesity medicine and lifestyle medicine coursework through Harvard Medical School continuing education. I pursued additional training in menopause care and hormone therapy through the Heather Hirsch Academy, led by Heather Hirsch, MD, founder of the Menopause and Midlife Clinic at Brigham and Women's Hospital, and I am a member of The Menopause Society (formerly the North American Menopause Society). My training in sexual health, regenerative procedures, and aesthetic medicine includes PRP-based procedures through the Cellular Medicine Association, including the O-Shot®, P-Shot®, and Vampire Facial®, as well as formal training in aesthetic injectables and laser treatments, with ongoing continuing education.

At Mona Medical, care is grounded in evidence, guided by clinical judgment, and personalized to the person in front of us. Visits allow time to understand the whole picture. Recommendations are explained clearly, including the strength and limitations of the available evidence. Weight and hormone care include meaningful follow-up. Aesthetic treatments are conservative, precise, and designed to look natural.

Outside the office, you will often find me on the trails of our beautiful Monterey County hills or walking along the ocean, exploring a national park when I can get away, and at home with my family, where two spoiled cats supervise everything. This is the community that raised me, and it is a privilege to care for it.

Lorena Monarrez, MD

Training and credentials

• Board-certified in Emergency Medicine, American Board of Emergency Medicine
• Diplomate, American Board of Obesity Medicine
• Stanford University, Human Biology with a focus in neuropsychology; University of California, San Francisco, MD; emergency medicine residency, UCSF Fresno; public health coursework, UC Berkeley
• Obesity medicine and lifestyle medicine coursework, Harvard Medical School continuing education
• Menopause care and hormone therapy training through the Heather Hirsch Academy; member, The Menopause Society (formerly the North American Menopause Society)
• Sexual health and regenerative training, including the O-Shot®, P-Shot®, and Vampire Facial® procedures, with the Cellular Medicine Association
• Focused training in aesthetic injectables, laser, and regenerative treatments
• Founder and Medical Director, Mona Medical (Monarrez Medical Corporation), Salinas and Carmel

The practice

Mona Medical is a physician-led practice built around personalized medicine for lasting well-being. We bring aesthetic medicine, hormone and sexual health, medical weight management, and concierge care together in one thoughtful approach, because patients experience their health as a whole, not as a collection of separate concerns.

Our care is grounded in evidence and guided by clinical judgment, individual goals, and honest discussion. When appropriate, carefully selected complementary approaches may be considered alongside conventional medical care, with transparency about the potential benefits, risks, alternatives, and limitations of the available evidence.

Led by Dr. Lorena Monarrez, the Mona Medical team provides care with time to listen, recommendations that are clearly explained, and follow-up that is part of the plan. In-person care is available in Salinas and Carmel, with telehealth appointments across California.