About Me

Why nursing?  I do not know. 

This was in late nineties, in a small town of Southern India where I was raised, where nursing was the least ‘desirable profession’, constantly looked down upon, where nurses where often ‘morally degraded’ (thanks to media and television shows portrayal of sexy nurses in skimpy clothes)and were considered ‘physician’s handmaids’.

Looking back to those days, I truly believe, nursing, for me, was a calling in life.  I did not choose nursing.  Nursing chose me, grew up on me and groomed me to be the person that I am today.  It gave me my individual values, an irresistible passion, an unquenchable thirst, that keeps me going even to this day.

Why psych nursing?

I think it has something to do with an incident that occurred when I studied in 11th grade, where a student ended his life by consuming poison meant to kill rats, leaving behind a note saying, that he couldn’t go on anymore because of the parental  pressure, where he couldn’t live up to the expectations of his parents and teachers alike.  That wasn’t just a solitary case.  We read about such stories all the time in the newspapers, which got me thinking about pressure, stress, depression and coping mechanisms.

Credit to Sydney Sims for image.

That ignited in me a passion for mental health and wellness.  What better way to pursue a career of my dreams, other than to pursue mental health nursing?

Individuals faced with mental illness often have to fight their own demons exaggerated by their symptoms, hallucinations, delusions and low self-perceptions; and fighting the daily struggle to complete their daily activities of living, while simultaneously enduring prejudices and stereotypes that come from society.  While societal prejudices assign public stigma to those suffering from mental illnesses, self-stigma, associated with the individuals themselves adds an additional burden to the situation.

Modern nursing has empowered the nurses to challenge the stereotypes that label mental health patients and be the bearers of change in society through client and milieu safety planning, coping skills training, de-escalation techniques and group therapies.

Now is the time to give back to the profession that has given me a purpose, a direction in life.  Someone has rightly said, if opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.  This is my door, a door that I built, with the pure and only intention of giving back to “Mental health, wellness and nursing”.  This blog will be a channel to discuss the true-life experiences, the techniques, the concepts and the latest dimensions of Mental Health Nursing. 

The year 2020, marks my 20th anniversary of my calling in Mental Health Nursing.

 This year has also been officially declared as the YEAR OF THE NURSE AND MIDWIFE and coincides with Florence Nightingale’s bicentennial and the timing to launch this blog couldn’t just be more perfect!!!