Maya Broetje Bairstow Intern

(she/her)

Maya is a first-year Master of Social Work student at the University of Washington. She has spent the past four years in clinical and community-based settings supporting children and families navigating medical, interpersonal, and social challenges, with a focus in autism, neurodiversity, and queer identity development. As someone who lives with chronic pain, she also brings her lived experiences into her work and believes in developing a therapeutic relationship that feels safe and collaborative. 

In preparation for her clinical work, Maya is exploring narrative, strengths-based, and somatic therapies from a queer- and neurodiversity-affirming, trauma-informed framework. She has endless curiosity and openness, with an eclectic collection of special interests that includes learning all about others and what brings them joy, so she looks forward to connecting with Holistic’s community.

If you’ve looked around the website — thank you! Maya has been updating it, in the hopes that it shares more of what Holistic has to offer (and shows how fun and friendly our people and spaces are). If you ever have questions or suggestions on how to make our spaces more accessible, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

In her free time, Maya loves to get lost in a book or project, whether it’s 1,000 pages or a 1,000-piece Lego set. She also listens to nearly every genre of music and has gained a new appreciation for walking around outside with her sister and dog, as it helps her recenter and take a much-needed breath on a noisy day.

Books Maya Loves:

The Raven Cycle — Maggie Stiefvater (found family, quest for dead Welsh kings, psychics and ley lines, spooky trees)

We Are Okay — Nina LaCour (love and grief, it feels like a good cry while held by your favorite person)

Resources Maya Wants to Share:

MadQueer.org — created by Elliott Fukui: “Mad Queer Organizing Strategies are the trainings and resources that I offer to support folks who may identify/be identified as people living with mental illness, folks who identify with experiencing emotional crisis, and anyone who is looking for tools to support grounding in disability justice, mutual aid, and abolitionist strategies.”