Zach Bruns

Zach Bruns is a licensed professional counselor (LPC) based in Wisconsin who centers his work on Trauma-Focused Therapy alongside person-centered and cognitive-behavioral approaches. He aims to create a respectful, empathetic space where people can talk about what feels hard and start making practical changes. Zach highlights listening and collaboration as the first steps in therapy.

He brings eight years of experience supporting people with stress, anxiety, depression, bipolar symptoms, and ADHD. He has also worked with those affected by substance use, sleep problems, obsessive-compulsive concerns, and grief. His background includes counseling and case management roles that involved working with people who experienced homelessness, childhood trauma, and domestic violence.

In sessions he uses a person-centered stance that emphasizes presence, empathy, and respect for cultural differences. He mixes that with cognitive-behavioral techniques and solution-focused methods to help people develop specific coping skills and small, achievable steps. Trauma-Focused Therapy is part of his approach when past harm is a central concern.

Zach tends to use motivational interviewing strategies to support change around substance use and other behaviors. He focuses on practical goals, such as improving sleep, managing mood swings, or reducing anxiety. He encourages people to recognize their strengths and build on them.

He writes plainly about the courage it takes to reach out and invites prospective clients to begin with a short matching questionnaire and scheduling step. The first session typically looks at priorities and agrees on goals to guide future meetings.

How therapy approaches shape online work

Trauma-Focused Therapy focuses on addressing the effects of past harm and helping people reduce the ways trauma disrupts daily life. It often includes careful pacing, grounding techniques, and building skills to manage intense memories or emotions.

Client-Centered Therapy emphasizes being heard and understood. The therapist keeps a nonjudgmental, compassionate stance and supports clients in finding their own answers. This approach helps with things like low self-esteem, grief, and relationship concerns.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, helps people notice unhelpful thoughts and try new behaviors. It is practical and task-oriented, often including small exercises between sessions to improve sleep, manage anxiety, or change patterns that feed depression.

Choosing an approach is collaborative. The therapist will work with the person to identify problems, set goals, and decide which methods best match their needs and values. That plan can change as progress is made.

Because the biography does not list specific session formats, confirm the current options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life by removing travel time and allowing shorter check-ins around work or caregiving. They can also let people use audio-only options when bandwidth is limited or choose meetings that work around school or work breaks. Licensed professionals can adapt these approaches to remote work so sessions focus on skills, problem-solving, and emotional processing without changing the core therapeutic steps.