Peplau's Ghost

Send us Fan MailFear can drive a lot of psychiatric care, and not just on the patient side. We sat down with Kristen Richardson, a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner in private practice in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to talk about the part of mental health work that many clinicians quietly avoid: sitting with strong emotions without trying to shut them down. Her career story starts early with CNA work and nursing school, then collides with the reality of residential treatment where “help” can look like medication, restraint, and distance instead of connection. Kristen shares the moment that changed her entire approach when a young client told her, “I don’t want you to feel sorry for me.” From there, we explore trauma-informed care through a somatic therapy lens, including how fight, flight, freeze, and fawn responses shape decisions long after the original events, and why “the body keeps the score” is more than a catchphrase. She also speaks candidly about how blocked memories, fear, and unprocessed pain can show up in relationships and identity, and why clinician self-work matters if we want to help others heal. We also get practical about Healing Touch, therapeutic boundaries, and how Peplau’s interpersonal relations theory supports a deeply human, equal-footing therapeutic relationship. Kristen explains how she offers Healing Touch with clear consent, how she adapts for clients who do not want physical touch, and why she documents it as a nursing intervention rather than billing separately. If you’re a PMHNP student, a practicing clinician, or a DNP learner looking for outcomes research ideas, there’s a lot here about building a therapy-forward model inside a med-focused system. Subscribe for more conversations on psychiatric nursing, share this with a colleague who cares about holistic mental health care, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway or question.Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailA routine med refill visit can hide a much bigger story and if we miss it, the consequences can land far outside the clinic. We’re joined by Dr. Rene Buenzow, a dual-certified family nurse practitioner and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, for a grounded, practical talk on trauma-informed care with a sharp focus on coercive control, interpersonal violence, and post-separation abuse. She breaks down the neurobiology of trauma in plain language, then connects it to what we actually see: anxiety, depression, sleep problems, somatic symptoms, and “messy” presentations that get mislabeled when we ignore context.We also get real about the systems around our patients. Renee explains why misunderstandings in clinical assessment and documentation can ripple into custody disputes and a stressed family court system, raising the stakes for accurate diagnosis and careful language. From there, we zoom out to whole-person psychiatric nursing: integrating psychotherapy, somatic tools, and holistic supports alongside medication management and advanced treatments like Spravato and TMS, with the bigger goal of better outcomes and less unnecessary psychotropic polypharmacy.Then we shift to advocacy. Renee shares how moving from Iowa to reduced practice authority in Wisconsin pushed her into legislative work that ultimately helped change policy, plus what she learned about getting a seat at the table when politics and prescribing collide. We close with advice every PMHNP needs: mentorship, boundaries, and “therapy for the provider” so the work stays sustainable.Subscribe, share this with a colleague, and leave a review, then tell us what part of trauma-informed practice you want to get better at next.Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailYou can hear it in Dr. Kemi’s voice: psychiatric nursing is not just a job, it is a long practice of showing up for people with skill and humanity. We sit down with Dr. Kemi, a DNP prepared psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner and owner of an outpatient mental health practice, to trace the road from immigrating to the United States at 16 to leading teams, precepting students, and caring for communities across state lines. Along the way, we talk honestly about what it takes to keep going when the path is hard and the need is constant. We unpack mental health stigma across cultures, including how severe labels and silence can block treatment, and how education and normalizing language can open doors. Dr. Kemi connects that mission to communication and advocacy through her leadership with the International Society of Psychiatric Nurses (ISPN), with a focus on making psychiatric mental health nursing more visible locally and globally. We also zoom in on Peplau’s interpersonal relations theory and why the nurse patient relationship remains one of the most powerful tools in psychiatric care when you treat the whole person, not just the diagnosis. Burnout and boundaries get real airtime too. Dr. Kemi shares the non negotiables that keep her regulated, plus what private practice ownership really looks like when the clinical day ends and the business work begins. A moving postpartum story brings the conversation back to mental health disparities and the social determinants that shape outcomes long before a prescription is written. If you care about trauma informed care, culturally responsive psychiatry, and sustainable work as a PMHNP, this conversation will stay with you. Subscribe, share this with a colleague, and leave a review so more nurses and clinicians can find the show and join the conversation.Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailMental health care doesn’t improve because we post the right graphic once a year. It improves when we listen to real people, then change what we do next. Dr. Dan Wesemann and Dr. Kemi mark World Mental Health Day on October 10, 2026 with a clear message for psychiatric mental health nurses: our impact is global, and our leadership matters now.We dig into the 2026 theme, “lived experiences heard, real voices, real change,” and why it belongs at the center of person-centered, evidence-based mental health care. Listening isn’t passive. It shapes safety, trust, engagement, and outcomes, especially for people who feel ignored, stigmatized, or pushed to the margins. We talk about moving beyond a one-size-fits-all approach so care reflects the whole person, not just a diagnosis on a chart.We also share how the International Society of Psychiatric Nurses (ISPN) is building momentum through advocacy and a stronger digital presence, creating more opportunities for psychiatric mental health nurses to connect, lead, and influence change. Dan reflects on the “invisible” parts of the job that the public rarely sees, and why a shared day of recognition can strengthen our community across the 364 days in between. We close with ways to stay connected and look ahead to ISPN’s upcoming conference in Asheville, North Carolina.If this conversation resonates, subscribe, share it with a colleague, and leave a review. What’s one change you want to see in mental health care this year?Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailSeven minutes is not mental health care, it’s a transaction. We sit down with two working psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners, Dr. Wendy Lind and Dr. Keri Shady, to talk about what actually changes outcomes when the schedule is tight, the charting is endless, and patients still need someone to truly listen. Along the way, we connect their real-world practice back to Hildegard Peplau’s core idea: nursing is an interpersonal process, and the therapeutic relationship is not a “nice to have” but the foundation. We get concrete about what it looks like to protect that foundation: setting boundaries with productivity pressure, making time when a patient clearly needs more than a 15-minute slot, and creating safety for kids and families when the real story is hiding behind head nods. We also dig into how new clinicians evolve from scripted intake questions to more meaningful assessment, and how evidence-based practice shows up in everyday PMHNP decision-making through valid screening tools, symptom overlap education, and treating diagnosis as a working diagnosis that can change with time. Then we tackle modern clinic realities: the documentation burden, the tension between typing and presence, and why so many clinicians finish narrative notes after hours. We also address “Dr TikTok” and patients who walk in requesting a specific diagnosis or medication, offering a respectful way to redirect toward assessment, shared decision-making, and patient education. If you’re a student, new grad, preceptor, or seasoned PMHNP navigating burnout and imposter syndrome, this conversation is packed with practical perspective. Subscribe to Peplau’s Ghost, share this with a student or colleague, and leave a review if it helps, what’s one thing you do to protect time for real listening?Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailA lot of mental health care still runs on a quiet assumption: name the disorder, match the protocol, move on. When we do that, we can end up calling something “treatment-resistant depression” when the real driver is developmental trauma, chronic stress, or attachment wounds that never had a chance to heal. That gap is where our conversation with Dr. Jordan Madden, a PMHNP from Wisconsin, gets especially real and especially useful. Jordan walks us through his long path from CNA work in a nursing home to geriatric psychiatry, Mayo Clinic experience, and eventually building a private practice in his hometown. Along the way, he wrestles with the limits of a strictly biomedical model even while seeing the benefits of interventional psychiatry like IV ketamine, Spravato (esketamine), and TMS. We explore how trauma-informed care and whole-person case formulation can change what we think we’re treating, not just how we treat it. We also dig into parts-based trauma work and Developmental Needs Meeting Strategy (DNMS), an ego state therapy that focuses on unmet childhood needs and the “wounded parts” that can get stuck in the past. Jordan shares simple ways to explain triggers, disproportionate reactions, and nervous system responses using concepts like polyvagal theory, plus practical guidance for PMHNPs who want to start integrating trauma principles without pretending they’re doing specialty trauma therapy. To close, we tackle a big question: if you had $1 million to change psychiatry, what would you fund? Jordan’s answer centers on softening our approach, slowing down, building real relationships, and reducing burnout while staying socially aware and deeply human. If you care about trauma-informed psychiatry, complex PTSD, and care that fits actual lives, subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a review so more clinicians can find it.Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailYou can have all the credentials in the world and still feel like a “dried husk” by the time you hit practice. That’s why we brought on Dr. Pedro Morante, host of the Mindful Moments podcast and a dual board certified FNP and PMHNP, to talk honestly about what happens after graduation and what it takes to stay whole while doing hard mental health work. We get into the real stuff clinicians whisper about: imposter syndrome, the pressure to be perfect, and those sleepless nights when you’re convinced you’re not good enough. Pedro shares how mistakes can become teachers, why time management and self-care are not luxuries, and how creating space for someone’s story can change your identity as a provider. If you care about clinician resilience, transition to practice, and sustainable mental health careers, this conversation is built for you. Then we shift into the clinical craft. We explore psychotherapy as an essential PMHNP skill that informs assessment and prescribing, even in brief medication management visits. We talk therapeutic alliance, curiosity beneath symptoms, and practical tools like motivational interviewing and cognitive reframing. Pedro also breaks down how integrated care thinking improves differential diagnosis when physical symptoms and psychiatric symptoms overlap, and what to look for in jobs so you can build a psychiatric career you don’t need to escape from. If this helped you, subscribe, share the episode with a colleague, and leave a review. What’s one practice change you want to make after listening?Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailIf you’ve ever hesitated to ask the hard mental health question because you feared what might come next, you’re not alone and you’re not weak. We talk with Dr. Elizabeth Hopfenspirger, a dual-board certified family nurse practitioner and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, about what she learned watching mental health needs slip through the cracks in primary care and why she felt pulled toward psychiatry long before the credential made it official. We also get honest about the career reality of being the only mental health provider in a setting. Elizabeth shares what it’s like to build roles that didn’t exist, carry the weight of complex outpatient work, and then choose academia for a healthier work-life balance and a bigger impact. From there, we unpack how PMHNP education can better mirror clinical practice: case-based learning, preparing for complex comorbidities, and training students to think beyond “start an SSRI” toward a full plan with options, resources, and real clinical reasoning. Then we go deeper into psychotherapy training and the inner work clinicians can’t skip. We talk reflective practice, receiving feedback, countertransference without shame, and why personal therapy can be a powerful part of becoming a safer, steadier provider. We also connect psychoneuroendocrinology to everyday psychiatric care, including perinatal mental health, perimenopause and menopause, HPA axis stress, dopamine shifts, and the relief patients feel when biology and lived experience finally make sense together. If you care about integrated behavioral health, PMHNP training, psychiatric prescribing, and keeping the human connection at the center, this conversation is for you. Subscribe, share this episode with a colleague, and leave a review, then tell us what topic you want next.Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailYou can feel it in your gut when a plan looks perfect on paper but fails in real life and rural mental health care is full of those moments. We sit down with Dr. Josh Waddell, PMHNP and host of the Mental Maps Podcast, to talk about what actually changes outcomes when depression, anxiety, serious mental illness, and substance use collide with food deserts, long drives, and limited resources. His journey from psychology and psychotherapy into medication management makes the conversation blunt, practical, and deeply human.We dig into why psychotropic medications can be essential in acute crisis yet fall short for many mild to moderate cases, and how that frustration can open the door to integrative psychiatry. We talk nutrition, lab testing, nutraceuticals, and the careful role of herbs, not as hype, but as additional tools when patients are stuck. Along the way, we explore how to blend psychotherapy principles into brief prescribing visits so meds support the work rather than replace it.We also get specific about the parts of care that most trainings do not spell out: countertransference with high-acuity or treatment-resistant patients, and how “baffled, frustrated, confused” can be useful data if we check ourselves and stay curious. Then we tackle a high-volume clinical scenario: how to invite psychotherapy when someone is pre-contemplative, including a simple way to ask whether their current improvement is actually “well,” and what to do when a patient has no template for wellness at all.If you’re a PMHNP, student, or mental health clinician who wants better results and less burnout, this one is for you. Subscribe, share this with a colleague, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway or the toughest barrier you see in your own community.Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]

Send us Fan MailThe fastest way to miss what matters in psychiatric care is to treat the visit like a transaction. We talk with Dr. Paula Allocca, director of a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner program and founder of an integrative functional medicine psychiatry practice, about how advanced practice can keep its soul while expanding its scope. Her story moves from an early love of people’s stories to deep CBT training, teaching and research, and then a pivotal decision to add medication management so she could better serve patients whose needs go beyond talk therapy alone.We dig into the profession’s big transition from therapy-forward roles to prescribing-forward workflows. Yes, PMHNPs gain the ability to address biological well-being and to fight stigma by treating mental health as brain-based health care. But we also name what gets lost when “15-minute med checks” replace a working therapeutic relationship, especially in a world where AI and speed can pressure us to move too fast. The throughline is clear: without the therapeutic alliance, trust fades and lasting change becomes harder.Functional psychiatry gives us another lens: symptoms are signals, not conclusions. Dr. Allocca explains functional medicine as systems-based thinking that looks for root causes, then shares how issues like gut dysbiosis and the gut-brain axis can show up as depression. We also get practical about training psychotherapy skills in online PMHNP education, what telehealth changes, and why eye contact and intention still matter. Subscribe, share this with a colleague, and leave a review if you want more conversations that keep psychiatric nursing relational, rigorous, and human.Let’s ConnectDr Dan WesemannEmail: [email protected]: https://nursing.uiowa.edu/academics/dnp-programs/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitionerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-wesemann Dr Kate MelinoEmail: [email protected] Dr Sean ConvoyEmail: [email protected] Dr Melissa ChapmanEmail: [email protected]