When people ask why I became a mental health nurse, I always go back to where my journey began: as a teenager receiving support for my own mental health.

At a time when I needed help most, I experienced first-hand the impact that compassionate, skilled nurses can have on someone’s life. Watching the way they listened, supported, and cared for people inspired something in me. It lit a little fire that has never gone out. From that point on, I knew mental health was where my passion lay.

At 19, I completed a Foundation Degree in Mental Health Studies, which led me to apply for mental health nursing at Leeds Beckett University. I was excited about the future, but my journey wasn’t without heartbreak.

During my first year of nursing training, I lost my father to mental illness and alcoholism. It was one of the most difficult experiences of my life. Before he passed away, he told me that mental health nursing was my calling and that he was proud I was going into the world to “fix” people just like him.

Those words stayed with me.

When things felt difficult during my training, I carried his belief in me and his legacy forward. They became the fuel that kept that fire burning until graduation.

I qualified in 2017 and joined Cygnet Hospital Stevenage that October as a newly qualified nurse beginning my preceptorship. Nearly a decade later, I’m still here, and that’s something I’m incredibly proud of.

Over the years, Cygnet has supported me to grow both professionally and personally. Two years after qualifying, I was promoted to Clinical Team Leader, and two years later I became a Practice Development Nurse.

Looking back, it’s hard to believe how far I’ve come. I arrived as a newly qualified nurse full of enthusiasm but also uncertainty. Today, I have the privilege of supporting students, preceptees, and developing nurses as they begin their own journeys.

That growth is one of the reasons I’m so Proud to be a Cygnet Nurse.

Along the way, I’ve been lucky enough to work with incredible people who have shaped me as a nurse. If I had to name my nursing hero, it would be Alice Zimba.

I still remember being newly qualified, overwhelmed and in tears, full of self-doubt and wondering whether I was good enough. Alice pulled me aside and gave me unwavering support.

What makes Alice special is her presence. She is connected, authentic and deeply compassionate. I remember watching her work with service users in the middle of what could be a chaotic environment. While everything around her seemed busy and demanding, she remained completely focused on the person in front of her, offering understanding, patience and support.

When she was a Clinical Manager, she never hesitated to roll her sleeves up and help on the ward when teams were short-staffed. She would always say, “It’s always for the patients, init.”

Now, as Hospital Manager, she remains exactly the same person. Her door is always open. Her heart is always ready to receive you exactly as you are. She has a way of challenging you when you doubt yourself, and somehow you leave her office feeling lighter and stronger at the same time.

She embodies the kind of nurse and leader I aspire to be.

For me, nursing has always been about human connection.

My “why” isn’t an award, a promotion or a title. It’s the moments that happen every day.

It’s walking onto the ward and seeing service users rush over because they want to talk. It’s being trusted with their worries, fears and stories. It’s listening to minds that are often full and overwhelmed, remaining present, and helping make sense of what they’re experiencing.

It’s seeing someone leave an interaction feeling a little calmer, a little more understood, or a little more hopeful than before.

Those moments matter.

They remind me why I chose this profession and why I continue to love it.

The theme of being Proud to be a Cygnet Nurse resonates deeply with me because Cygnet has provided opportunities that have helped shape the nurse I am today.

From my very first days as a newly qualified nurse to my current role as a Practice Development Nurse, I’ve been encouraged to learn, grow and develop. Cygnet saw potential in me, invested in me and gave me opportunities to progress.

But what makes me most proud isn’t the role I’ve achieved. It’s the people.

At Cygnet Hospital Stevenage, we are more than colleagues. We are a family.

We support each other through difficult days. We celebrate each other’s successes. We challenge one another to grow. Most importantly, we come together around a shared purpose: providing the best possible care for the people who need us.

When I think about my journey, from a teenager receiving mental health support, to a student nurse carrying the memory of her father, to a Practice Development Nurse helping others find their own confidence, I realise how much this profession has given me.

Mental health nursing truly was my calling.

And I am proud that I’ve been able to answer that calling at Cygnet.