Maya Handwerk, LCSW

Maya Handwerk is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in New York with 15 years of clinical and advocacy experience. She works with adults facing stress, anxiety, relationship and family concerns, trauma and abuse, parenting strains, grief, anger, career questions, bipolar disorder, depression, and other life changes including blended family issues.

Her background includes direct clinical work and advocacy in education, legal, and community settings. She has experience supporting people who have had crises and those who needed coordinated care with psychiatrists for anxiety disorders. That experience informs how she coordinates care and talks through treatment options with clients.

Maya uses familiar, practical methods in sessions. She draws on Client-Centered Therapy to focus on each person’s perspective. She uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to spot patterns of thinking and try different actions. Motivational Interviewing helps when someone needs a nudge toward change.

She also brings psychodynamic ideas and mindfulness techniques into conversations when they fit the client’s goals. Her work emphasizes cultural awareness, especially with African American and Caribbean clients, and she considers cultural context when discussing relationships and family roles.

Sessions tend to be straightforward and action-focused. Maya aims to help people manage immediate problems and set short-term goals, while also looking at longer-standing patterns when needed. To start, she asks a few questions to match goals and schedule a first meeting.