Ryan Bufton, APSW, LCSW

Ryan works with adults facing a wide range of mental health challenges, including depression, trauma, and lifelong struggles across many situations.

Ryan is trained in Acceptance & Commitment Therapy & Brainspotting. Ryan works with adults facing a variety of mental health and substance abuse challenges. He is dedicated to helping clients develop clearer thinking, better understand their emotions, and build effective coping strategies for long-term wellness. His psychotherapy services are provided under clinical supervision. Ryan’s experience spans multiple levels of care, including outpatient therapy, partial hospitalization, and assertive community treatment/community support programs. His roles have included Co-Occurring Disorders Therapist, Counselor, Psychotherapist, Case Manager, and Director.

Ryan has a Master’s degree in Clinical Social Work from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, where he also earned a Graduate Certificate in Trauma-Informed Care. He also received a $10,000 fellowship in graduate school for a youth oriented substance abuse and trauma counseling field placement. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Sociology.

During his time at UWSP, he received the Distinguished Achievement Award from the College of Letters and Sciences. He studied victimology under a criminologist/sociologist. For four semesters, he worked as an Undergraduate Research Assistant in the Social Development Lab. During his fifth semester, he was project manager and secondary author for a study on college students and their biases about job importance due to worker's gender. During the summer, he co-presented this as a research poster at the APA convention in Hawaii.

Ryan specializes in treating clients who have experienced emotional trauma. Ryan’s therapeutic approach is to help clients adapt to life’s challenges. He draws from several evidence-based modalities, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Cognitive Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, and various mindfulness and/or somatic techniques. He remains committed to expanding his therapy techniques in order to best serve his clients.