Percepção de estudantes universitários sobre o tratamento para depressão com antidepressivos

Abstract

The aim of this research is to investigate the perception of university students at Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso-UFMT on the treatment for depression with antidepressants. This is a qualitative and quantitative cross-sectional descriptive study carried out at the Cuiabá Campus, with 239 students. This study took place in two stages, in the first, students who scored high in the screening scale of depressive symptoms and who were or did not consume antidepressants were raised. In the second stage, the students were invited to participate in the individual interview, performed at the service of applied Psychology of the Federal University of Mato Grosso. For data collection, the following instruments were used: socio-demographic questionnaire, structured interview containing information on health and use of antidepressant medications, semi-structured interview and for screening of symptomatology Depressive Depression Scale (adult version)-EBADEP-A was used. The statistical analyses were performed in the Instat program, and the interviews were treated by the Bardin content Analysis (2009). The results indicated that twenty-three students had a significant score on the EBADEP-A depressive symptom screening scale (up 77 points), with responses categorized as moderate and severe depression. Of these 23 university students, six were under medication, while seventeen did not use antidepressant medication. Interview results indicated that students perceive antidepressant medications as effective and necessary, but reported side effects and fear of addiction. Given this, they prefer other treatments besides presenting invalidating beliefs about themselves and difficulty in relation to social prejudice. It is concluded that the way the student perceives the experience of taking antidepressant medication contributes to the evolution of the treatment.