by Terri L. Gerber, LICSW

1. Do you feel down in the dumps for 2 or more weeks? Or for 2 or 3 days every week?

2. Have you lost interest in things you like to do?
3. Do you feel low energy or restless feelings?
4. Do you feel guilty or hopeless?
5. Do you feel angry a lot?
6. Do you feel tense or find yourself worrying a lot?
7. Do you have a lot of negative thinking or a negative attitude about most things?
8. Do you cry frequently or often feel like it?
9. Do you spend a lot of time alone?
10. Do you feel out of control with eating or have you lost your appetite and aren’t eating as much as usual?
11. How are you sleeping? Do you have insomnia? Or do you sleep excessively?
12. Do you feel cranky and keyed up?
13. Do you feel tired most of the time?
14. Are you missing quite a bit of school or work?
15. Are you having trouble concentrating, paying attention, focusing? Do you feel spacey?
16. Do you have frequent headaches or stomach aches?
17. Have you lost your enthusiasm for activities that you used to enjoy?
18. Do you ever think about or have fantasies about dying or suicide?

These questions are important in assessing depression. If in answering them you have some concern about yourself, then you should get a full and formal evaluation from your physician or a mental health professional. They will be able to determine whether you have a clinical depression, whether it is mild, medium or severe, and what treatment options are available to you.