Before the advent of psychopharmacology, many people suffered from the symptoms of their mental disorders, which significantly impaired their overall functioning. But this branch of pharmacology provides these individuals with hope and the possibility of a normal life, despite the presence of their illness.

The study of psychopharmacology has led to the discovery of numerous drugs that have improved people's quality of life. Currently, some of these psychotropic medications are used off-label, as adjunctive, or in combination with other psychotropic medication to elicit a positive therapeutic outcome.

For certain psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, patients can reach a point at which their condition becomes refractory. However, continuing research into the development of medications with novel mechanisms of action and effects has allowed for breakthroughs in cases that were once considered to be resistant to treatment.

While it is evident that great strides have been made in the treatment of mental disorders, much more exploration and research still needs to be done.

For most individuals, monotherapy is generally the first treatment approach that is applied. With the majority of mental disorders, this can either be psychotherapeutic intervention or pharmacological intervention. But, in certain cases, a clinician may need to move to combination therapy in order to achieve the desired effect.

For example, combination therapy with pharmacotherapy and nonpharmacological interventions (such as behavioral therapy, individual therapy and other forms of psychotherapy) have been shown to yield optimal benefits compared to monotherapy for the treatment of depression. Clinicians should always take this into consider when deciding what type of therapeutic intervention to initiate in a client who is severely depressed.

A person's mood refers to his/her dominant emotion that is expressed to the outside world. When there is an imbalance or dysregulation, this can lead the development of a mood disorder. Depression is considered to be one of the most serious and most widely studied mental disorders, and its usual presentation is that sufferers experience a lack of interest, loss of energy, fatigue, distorted thinking, guilt and behavioral excesses, etc.

The use of antidepressants and other mood stabilizers have been instrumental in improving the conditions of many people with different mood disorders, which can be extremely debilitating and potentially lead to suicide if left untreated. The efficacy of many of the mood stabilizers that are currently on the market have been demonstrated. But with these drugs also comes the potential for serious side effects, so close monitoring must be performed at baseline and with continuation of therapy.

In some patient cases, it can be difficult to determine what would be in the best interest of an individual who has a chronic mood disorder when the medication can become a danger, but the person requires the medication in order to appropriately function to have some semblance of a normal life.