
Taking a Depression Test is an effective way in which to evaluate whether or not you are suffering from a depressive disorder. Often, the facts which are presented about depression and the symptoms of the various disorders are technical and complicated. Individuals may find it difficult to interpret the information and apply it to their own lives.
Depression tests and quizzes make it simpler for the ordinary person to evaluate their mental health. It should however be stressed that any test, whether online or in a book or journal cannot act as a substitute for a proper examination. If you suspect even for a second that you may be suffering from depression, you should immediately seek treatment from a qualified medical professional.
Taking the following test will help you to clarify whether or not you are in fact experiencing symptoms of depression:
• Are you often preoccupied with thoughts of death and dying, and have you at any point recently thought about attempting suicide or taking steps to end your own life?
• Have you recently lost a significant amount of weight despite not embarking on any kind of diet or exercise program?
• Do you suffer from insomnia or have bad dreams almost every night?
• Do you struggle to wake up every morning and dread the thought of climbing out of bed to face the world?
• Have your energy levels recently dropped to such an extent that you are constantly 'low' and simply surviving the day is a terrible uphill battle?
• Do you avoid looking in the mirror because the person staring back at you is someone that you intensely dislike who is constantly letting people down?
• Do you find yourself struggling to concentrate on tasks at hand, whether they are at work or during the course of everyday life?
• Are you abnormally tearful, agitated or moody?
• Do you sometimes feel as though you are detached from your body and living some kind of numb, dreamlike existence?
• Have you lost all interest in activities that you used to enjoy? Do the activities that used to make you smile and feel excited now leave you feeling completely unmoved?
• Have you lost your appetite completely, or alternatively found yourself craving mouthfuls of sweet, stodgy food?
If you answered yes to three or more of the above questions, you may be suffering from some kind of depressive disorder and should immediately seek proper diagnosis and treatment. In the event that you only answered yes to only one or two of the questions but have an idea that you may possibly be suffering from depression, you should nevertheless make an appointment with your health care practitioner. The faster depression is diagnosed and treated, the more effective treatment will be.
To be sure your depression is not as a result of addiction - please see our sister site Guide4Living on drug abuse and addiction.