aford87

Good afternoon folks! I'm a senior nursing student who had her first day of class today. As our clinical rotation worked out, I have my first day of Mental Health clinical TOMORROW, and haven't had any kind of lecture/preparation at all. I'm super nervous. I've always been super interested in critical care. I've worked as a tech on our Progressive Care Unit and in ICU for the last five years. Before I even got into nursing school, I knew I was afraid of the mental health portion. I'm very uncomfortable having face to face conversations with ANYONE and feel like having no mental health knowledge prior is going to hurt me in this situation. I was wondering if anyone who has been in this field for a while has any tips or tricks on how to have those crucial conversations. I'm so afraid I'm going to say the wrong thing to someone or not know what to say at all. I have an enormous amount of respect for nurses in this field and was hoping someone had some insight for a total newbie. Thanks so much in taking the time to read this. Have a good day!