About

Your first job as a PMHNP can feel overwhelming.

I'm Anna, a psychiatric nurse practitioner who remembers exactly what it felt like to be new in practice.

For the first six months of my career as a PMHNP, I worked in an inpatient setting. It felt like a natural transition after years of working as an inpatient psychiatric RN and completing my clinical training in similar environments.

Then I made the switch to outpatient psychiatry and began working via telehealth from home.

That's when the reality of independent practice really hit me.

As my schedule filled up, I found myself making complex clinical decisions on my own, second-guessing my judgment, and wondering if everyone else felt more confident than I did. There were days when the responsibility felt incredibly heavy, and I often felt alone in the experience.

Over time, I realized that many new PMHNPs share these same struggles—but few people talk openly about them.

I created The Growing PMHNP to share the lessons, systems, and resources that helped me navigate my first year in practice. My goal is to help new psychiatric nurse practitioners build confidence, develop clinical judgment, and feel supported as they grow into their role.

You don't have to figure everything out on your own.