Works with
How Michael works
Practical facts
- Credentials
- LCSW
- Licensed in
- New York
- Years in practice
- 5
- Languages
- English
- Session format
- Online, through our partner platform
About Michael
Michael Masters is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) practicing in New York. He uses straightforward, people-focused therapy to help clients handle strong emotions like anger and anxiety. Michael draws on five years of clinical experience and a background in community organizing to guide practical steps forward.
He focuses on real problems such as trauma and abuse, grief, loss, relationship strain, parenting stress, addiction, and career concerns. He also helps with self-esteem, coping with life changes, and compassion fatigue.
Background and approach
Sessions are aimed at making daily life easier to manage. Michael blends approaches including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, client-centered work, cognitive behavioral techniques, and elements of dialectical behavior and existential therapy. That mix lets him tailor sessions to what a person actually needs rather than using one fixed method.
Therapy often includes learning new coping skills, testing small changes, and talking through painful memories. His earlier work as a community organizer shaped how he listens for the ways systems and relationships affect wellbeing. He supports people who have experienced neglect, abandonment, adoption and foster care issues, or ongoing caregiver stress.
He also works with people dealing with chronic illness, neurodiversity, and varied relationship or intimacy concerns. Sessions are offered in English and Michael is able to work with international clients. He aims for clear goals and practical tools so people can notice steady progress between meetings.
What Michael works with
Everything Michael lists, in the therapist's own terms. Anger is the reason this directory exists; the rest tells you what usually sits alongside it in Michael's practice.
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Self esteem
- Coping with life changes
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- LGBT
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Intimacy-related issues
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Career difficulties
- Depression
- Coaching
- Compassion fatigue
- Abandonment
- Adoption and foster care
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Antisocial personality
- Attachment issues
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- Avoidant personality
- BDSM, kink, and alternative sex culture
- Blended family issues
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Fertility issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- HIV / AIDS
- Intellectual disability
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Post-traumatic stress
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexuality
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Traumatic brain injury
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches Michael lists
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Existential Therapy
- Jungian Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
Listing an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each therapist names and does not check training records.
Therapeutic approaches for online work
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on helping people notice difficult thoughts and feelings without getting locked into them, and then take value-driven action. It can be useful for chronic stress, anxiety, and problems like anger that persist despite trying to push feelings away. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) looks at how thoughts, feelings, and actions connect, and teaches specific skills to change patterns that cause distress. It often helps with anxiety, depression, and managing strong reactions.Finding the right approach is part of the work together. Michael will discuss goals and try methods that match a client's needs and preferences. Sessions are collaborative - the therapist and client choose techniques and adjust them based on what helps most.
Online sessions are offered by video call, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging to make therapy flexible. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues. Phone sessions work well when bandwidth is limited or a camera isn't convenient. Live chat and text messaging are useful for quick check-ins, shorter updates, or practicing skills between meetings. These options make it easier to fit therapy around work, caregiving, or travel while keeping continuity of care.
Questions people ask about Michael
What concerns does Michael help with?
He helps people facing trauma and abuse, grief, anger, stress, anxiety, addiction, depression, and relationship or parenting strain. Additional focus areas include abandonment, caregiver stress, chronic illness, and intimacy-related issues.
What is his therapy style like?
Michael combines Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, client-centered methods, CBT, and DBT elements for a practical, person-focused style. Sessions emphasize learning skills, trying small changes, and talking through difficult experiences.
How long has he been practicing clinically?
He has five years of clinical practice experience in New York, plus prior work as a community organizer that involved counseling individuals and families affected by systemic stress and trauma.
Where is he licensed and based?
He holds a Licensed Clinical Social Worker credential (LCSW) in New York and practices out of New York.
Which languages are available for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English. He also accepts international clients.
What session formats does he offer?
He offers video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to fit different needs and schedules.
How does payment and cost work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions are provided through a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with him?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.