moloko362

Hi :) I'm just looking for some advice from both adult and mental health nurses in the UK. I'm currently studying adult nursing but have a niggling feeling I'd like to do mental health...I feel it'd be interesting and I'd have empathy and understanding with people as I've suffered from mental health problems myself in the past. The trouble is, I've had no experience working in mental health whatsoever. I've never even visited a mental health unit,or anything like that. So I have no idea what it'd be like. My uni have given me the option of chaning branch, but only if I act quickly. So, if anyone has any advice, or can help me out...what's it like? Is it rewarding? Is the general opinion of it being really dangerous true, or just a byproduct of the tabloids? Are jobs more difficult to find as a mental health nurse? And also, from adult nurses, why did you choose adult and do you enjoy it? Thanks very much for reading, any advice greatly appreciated!

Cariad and all, Hi, I was wondering if you could help me out with a few facts, as I've read some of your previous posts and you seem full of really useful advice:) I'm a British citizen currently doing my nurse training but hoping to work in the US (My dad and his wife are both US citizens, so I'm not too worried about getting a visa as they are currently sponsoring me for a green card). My dilemma is...I'm studying adult branch nursing at the moment but would love to train as a mental health nurse, however I've heard that mental health nurses aren't recognised in the states. Is this true? Do you know of any bridging programmes in America, for example to 'top up' my mental health nursing in order to meet licensure requirements? If yes, how long do they take/are they expensive? I'll be heading to California when I get my green card, in case that makes a difference (I know req's vary from state to state) And lastly, how are you finding the US? Is it better than the UK? I hope you don't think I'm cheeky for asking you, you just seem to know what you're talking about so thought it would be worth a try. Thanks in advance for any replies:)