unicornbrain

Hello all, I'm brand new to this site, so I've no idea if I'm doing this correctly. Guess we'll find out :). I'm a brand new nurse working on a hospital step-down unit. I've always been interested in psychiatric nursing, but the general reaction from people is, "You'll get stuck passing meds all day." I've been reading this forum, and it appears that you all in the psych nursing world really like your jobs, which is encouraging. Still, I'm wondering: do you feel like you spend too much time passing meds? Do you get to spend TIME with patients, just talking to them? Do you get to lead groups? If anyone out there is a psych NP, do you feel this role is med-management heavy? I'm asking because, simply, I like people. That's one reason I became a nurse. I like hearing their stories, I like feeling like I've made a difference for someone. I'd like to be in a position where I feel like I'm getting that interaction. As an aside: do you find yourself greeted with negative-ish responses when you say you are in psych nursing? Is there a reason for this, or is psych nursing just not largely understood?