Users perception of risk and benefits of mood modifying drugs

This article presents a narrative review of qualitative research about reasons users consuming mood modifying drugs have to continue or discontinue medicine taking. Qualitative research provides insight to the phenomena of interest and has been used to understand how patients take medicines and identifies explicative models. Researchers have looked at how mood modifying drugs consumption fit in different models of medicine taking. Consumption of medicines involves frequently two sides from the point of view of the patients, the consideration of benefits and risk. Patients have to balance their perceptions and experiences of both sides and make decisions. It became clear that individual decisions composing the "personal career" of taking mood-modifier drugs is similar to other treatments of chronic conditions but with different limiting or adjuvant social forces at work. Mood modifying drugs produce not only concerns in relation to the drugs reactions but also to the perception that society has about them. Understanding the patient's perspective and the factors involved in the evaluation process for decision making about continuation or discontinuation of mood modifying drugs can help professionals to avoid longer than necessary consumption or early dropouts.