Published 2022-04-20
Keywords
- Psychotropic Drugs,
- Blog,
- Mental Disorders,
- Self-Injurious Behavior,
- Social Support
How to Cite
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Abstract
Background: Blogs constitute an important space for the expression of feelings, experiences and opinions; thus, it became relevant to investigate what has been published related to psychotropic drugs.
Objective: To analyze publications related to psychotropic drugs in blogs, in Portuguese.
Methods: This is a descriptive study with a qualitative approach. A blog platform called TUMBLR was chosen as a source for data collection. The publications eligible for the study were all those in the Portuguese language classified as “most popular”, of the “text” or “quotation” type, and identifiable by means of the words “Antidepressivos” (Antidepressants); “Ansiolíticos” (Anxiolytics), and “Antipsicóticos” (Antipsychotics) using the search icon of the site.
Results: The themes that represent the main topics addressed in the publications and that were included in this study are the following: “Negative perceptions on psychotropic drugs’’; “Positive perceptions on psychotropic drugs and on support networks”; “Impacts of mental illness and psychotropic drugs use”, and “Destructive behavior and psychotropic drugs”.
Conclusions: The negative perceptions on psychotropic drugs was the most prominent theme, followed by the positive perceptions that some individuals attribute to these medications. Has relevance the support networks in facing up the process of mental illness and distress, with Tumblr being mentioned as a support network. Highlighted some reports of destructive behaviors and of suicidal ideation that might or might not be linked to the use of psychotropic drugs.