Counselor Spotlight: Brandon
Brandon Bressler, LPC, ACS shares his counseling journey.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
First and foremost I am a son of God who struggles with sin like everyone else. I was born in Toledo, Ohio and lived in the suburbs of Detroit until about 4th grade when we moved to Sparta, NJ where I graduated high school. From there I went to Rowan University for jazz performance and music education, but then dropped out of the program after the first year, eventually graduating with a Business Marketing degree.
I am a husband to an amazing wife, and a proud dad to two amazing daughters. Since COVID, we have been homeschooling our daughters, which we never thought we would ever do but has been a huge blessing. My wife and I did not know Jesus until 4 years into our marriage after a terrible beginning to our relationship (mostly due to me and a long season of heroin addiction). We have been together since 2003 and experienced our own healing later on in our marriage thanks to Jesus. After beginning our journey with Christ, we began helping with our church plant which I currently pastor alongside one of my best friends. I also love music. I play several different instruments, starting with the saxophone, then drums, piano, singing, and finally a little guitar. I have performed with jazz bands in 5 different countries in Europe, was a part of a rock band that performed in the tristate area, and was almost signed to a major record label with one of the bands. I currently continue playing music, but in a way I had never expected: for the Lord, leading worship at our church. There is so much redemption to my and my wife's story that we could write a book about it!
What do you do for fun?
Spend time with my family, ride my motorcycles, play music, read, hike, play tabletop strategy games, and go hot air ballooning.
Favorite book, movie, or artist?
I am very eclectic in all regards especially in music, though I love blues and blues rock. A little Joe Bonamassa or Stevie Ray Vaughan, as well as some good ol 'rock and roll will always get me in a good mood. I love movies, especially if it makes me think or have a fun twist, like The Usual Suspects or Memento come to mind. I am also a sucker for submarine movies like The Hunt For Red October.
What does your ideal day look like?
My ideal day would probably look like breakfast with the family, family devotion and prayer, a nice ride on the motorcycle with my wife, and then a good steak dinner with an awesome glass of something that pairs well. Then, end it all with good conversation and singing songs with friends and family around a bonfire before lying next to my beautiful bride at the end of the night.
Do you have any pets?
No, but my daughters keep begging for a dog.
Cake or pie?
Pie all the way, especially lemon meringue!
What was your journey to becoming a counselor?
My journey to becoming a counselor is also my testimony. After being delivered and healed from many years of addiction, I met God who called me into counseling. I had grown up experiencing many different traumas, all of which led me to believe that God must not be real or did not love me. Though I grew up in a Christian home, this seed of lies grew in me, causing me to seek out the world in every way I could, leading to a life of destruction and chaos. I am still overwhelmingly grateful that my wife never left me and I did not die the many times I probably should have. I felt the call to counseling while sitting in a room in a rehab in Florida shortly after encountering God. I have been pursuing it ever since. It is my passion to help those out of the darkness who have been stuck in pain and dysfunction like I was.
Describe your approach to counseling.
There is no way to quickly answer this, but the simplest description would be to say that I take an integrated approach. From the wisdom of many mentors that I have had in life, I have come to find that the truth in the Bible is the deepest and most consistent anthropological view of the human condition, which makes sense because it is the words of our creator. Whether someone believes in Jesus or not, I still think the Bible provides the best guide in general to help the counseling process with deep compassion and love. I also am a firm believer that you don't throw the baby out with the bathwater; human experience can still be a great source of understanding and insight. This said, I integrate a few different theoretical styles of interventions and conceptualizations within the counseling process. I tend to conceptualize in a very psychodynamic way and blend in a mix of psychodynamic, psychoeducation, cognitive behavioral therapy, Gestalt, and dialectical behavior therapy interventions.
What areas of counseling are you most passionate about?
My most passionate areas of counseling include marriage, addictions, and trauma, especially my work with abuse victims. I also love to develop counselors and am one of the supervisors here at CCCRD.
Any advice for someone considering becoming a counselor?
I would have a lot of advice for someone considering this field, but probably at the top of the list would have to be to count the cost in several ways:
The financial cost.
The time and priority it takes to become licensed.
The compassion fatigue that comes from giving yourself to many people on a weekly basis.
The emotional bandwidth and empathy that is required.
The willingness to confront people for their betterment.
The experience of never seeing the completion of the work after clients finish counseling.
And if you are doing it for a job to make money first and foremost, you're in the wrong field. This is a really hard job if you don't love people.