Are you a Prejudiced Psycophobe?

When I quit my job in the gerneral med/surg ward to go and work in the psychiatric ward, everyone, including my charge nurse, said I must be crazy. Things like "They're all mad over there, and then there's the patients" or "You'll end up just like the patients" were common. No one I spoke to in the physical side of nursing could understand why I would want to do such a thing and discouraged me as much as possible.

I did make the change, and for two years had one of the most valuable experiences of my life. It was incredible, sad and even frightening to see people with no physical problems, yet because of the thoughts running through their heads, worse off than those with medical/physical illness. Sometimes I made a positive difference without even knowing it. For example, I became used to hearing people say things like "Sit with me" and when I asked why, a reply like "The voices want me to put my dinner fork in the electric socket" was not uncommon. My very presence seemed to help anchor them in our reality and stop them from making a fatal mistake.

Is anyone here willing to own up to being a little 'psychophobic?' The more my colleagues discouraged me from working in the psychiatric ward, the more I was determined to give it a go. Has anyone else had similar experiences from fellow staff? Has anyone else made the transition from regular medical nursing to the psychiatric ward?