DO I (OR SOMEONE I CARE ABOUT) HAVE DEPRESSION?

NOTE: You may find it useful to print out this questionnaire, complete it and bring it to your psychologist or doctor.

 

Answer the following questions based on how you, or someone close to you, have been feeling most of the time over the past 2 weeks.  Answer as quickly as you can, so you do not become confused by conflicting thoughts.

Symptoms of Depressive Illness Questionnaire

 

For most of the time over the past two weeks
1.	Have you had trouble keeping your mind on things you were reading, or watching on television?	YES	NO
2.	Have you had more trouble with your memory than usual?	YES	NO
3.	Have you feeling unusually tired every day?	YES	NO
4.	Have you found it hard to enjoy life?	YES	NO
5.	Have you had a lot of different physical symptoms or unusual pains?	YES	NO
6.	Have you been feeling emotionally numb, not caring, sad, unhappy or miserable?	YES	NO
7.	Have you been feeling more pessimistic or negative than usual?	YES	NO
8.	Have you lost interest or enjoyment in the things you normally do?	YES	NO
9.	Have you been less motivated, less productive, or found it more difficult to cope than usual?	YES	NO
10.	Have you been sleeping worse than usual?	YES	NO
11.	Have you been less interested in talking to people or mixing with people than usual?	YES	NO
12.	Have you been more worried, nervous or uptight than usual?	YES	NO
13.	Have you been more easily tearful, or crying more than usual?	YES	NO
14.	Have you enjoyed your food less than usual?	YES	NO
15.	Has your sexual interest been less than usual?	YES	NO
16.	Have you been less self-confident than usual?	YES	NO
17.	Have you been more anxious, nervous or worried than usual?	YES	NO
18.	Have you been more easily annoyed or more impatient than usual?	YES	NO
19.	Has life seemed meaningless?	YES	NO
20.	Has dying looked like a good option?	YES	NO

 

RESULT:  Answering ‘Yes’ to more than 2 or 3 questions suggests you could have depression.  Answering ‘Yes” to lots of the questions makes it increasingly likely you do have depression, the illness that can cause lots of suffering for you (and lots of worry for those close to you) but the illness can be very effectively wiped out.

 

 

 

If in fact you find you have a large number of symptoms, it makes the diagnosis of your illness more certain, and it also provides a bigger chemical target for antidepressant medications to assist you.

 

 

Academic note: This is a clinically derived questionnaire, which has not been statistically investigated.

 

 

 

 

Important Disclaimer:  This site is medical information only, and is not to be taken as diagnosis, advice or treatment, which can only be decided by your own doctor.