It's hard for me to say. My father is a doctor (trauma surgeon) so I was always taught that meds are absolutely to be used only as a very last resort. As far as the placebo effect is concerned, I do believe that at least to some extent, the way a person perceives a certain medication to be will determine the ultimate outcome of the effectiveness of the medication. Use myself for an example...I'm currently participating in a research study that is looking at the effects of DNA and medication to treat Bipolar Disorder. One of the meds I'm on is hard to tell if it's working or not. My psychiatrist claims it is used as a mood stabilizer but I'm wondering why I'm still having so many roller coaster issues with my mood swings, if that makes sense?