Darcy Wall

Advanced Practice Social Worker

Darcy has been working in various healthcare settings since the age of 17.  She has always had a passion and curiosity for mental health. She received her associate degree at Fox Valley Technical College for Occupational Therapy in 2009. At age 31, she took on the challenge of going back to college to obtain her bachelor’s degree in social work from Walden University. After accomplishing that feat, she decided to pursue her master’s degree in social work, from Walden University to be a mental health therapist. She has been at Healthfirst since March of 2022

She has an outgoing personality and enjoys learning about her clients. She enjoys working with adults struggling with depression, anxiety, self-esteem/body image, grief, trauma, and parenting concerns. She is a strong ally for LGBTQ+ individuals and runs the support group at our Wausau location.

She utilizes various therapy techniques such as: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment therapy, Dialectical Behavioral therapy, and Motivational interviewing. 

Bruce Pfeiffer

Licensed Professional Counselor – IT

Bruce attended University of Wisconsin Stevens Point for his undergraduate degree in Family Life Education in 2011at 33 years old.  He received his master’s degree from University of Wisconsin Superior in mental health counseling in 2023 at 46 years old.  Prior to pursuing a career in counseling, he spent 23 years in hospitality management.  Bruce became tired of the industry but loved the connections and relationships that he was consistently building with his customers/peers.  As he grew older, he began to question his life choices and goals.  He knew that he wanted to change his career path but wasn’t sure where to begin.  He did know that he wanted to continue helping those around him but was still questioning within which capacity that would be.   He has always been an empath by nature as well as being able to find the positive aspects within all personalities and behavioral characteristics.  Finally, he had a discussion with a friend, who works in healthcare, who offered some life/career guidance regarding the process of becoming a therapist that he finally realized his calling. In Bruce’s own words “As I continue this life-long learning process within the role of therapy work, I truly feel that this is what I was meant to do.  As well, I feel that my age/life experiences will help me in offering those I work with a greater degree of empathy and understanding when building that therapeutic relationship”. 

 He utilizes various therapy techniques such as: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Cognitive Processing Therapy, and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy modalities (PTSD/trauma-focused). As far as personality characteristic, “I would be an ENFJ-T (protagonist).  As well as being more of an extrovert than an introvert.  However, that did take some time for me to get to that point.  I truly value the expression/sensitivity of those around me”.

Carmen Vazquez

Nurse Practitioner

Carmen is a reproductive health nurse practitioner and forensic nurse/program coordinator. She specializes in patient centered, trauma informed care with an understanding of the effect that trauma can have on a person physically and mentally. She is an advocate on mental health care as well as viewing the patient in a holistic way. This means that what works for one person may not work for another. While talk therapy is an invaluable tool, for some, it may not be enough for peak mental health.

Carmen will work with the patient and their counselors to come to an agreement on whether introductory medications would be a benefit. She is experienced working with patients in highly stressed situations and focuses on distraction and redirection.

“Mental health is a serious subject, but it is still okay to laugh.”