Symptom Tests for Adults

[Self-Test] Depression in Adults

Depression is an extremely common and serious mood disorder that impacts roughly 14.8 million adults each year. Here, learn how the symptoms of major depressive disorder may present in adults, and whether you show signs of being depressed.

By ADHD Editorial Board Medically reviewed by Roberto Olivardia, Ph.D. on February 16, 2019

If you have depression, you feel sad or deflated most of the day, for weeks at a time. Your sadness affects your performance at work, relationships with your friends and family, and even the things you used to love.

Depression accounts for nearly $12 billion in lost workdays each year in America. Women are more likely to be diagnosed with major depression than are men, but that doesn’t mean it’s not equally likely in both genders. It is a serious illness that requires swift diagnosis and treatment; depressive symptoms are a leading cause of suicide among adults.

Depression overlaps with ADHD in two distinct ways: as a separate, unique condition occurring on its own, and as a secondary condition triggered by the frustrations of living with ADHD.

Adapted from the Goldberg Depression Inventory (c. 1993). Not a diagnostic tool. If you have concerns about possible depression see a mental health professional. An accurate diagnosis can only be made through clinical evaluation. Self-Test for personal use only.


I feel sad and unhappy.

1 out of 18



My life seems set in stone. I feel stuck.


2 out of 18


In the middle of the night, I’m wide awake, even if I’ve gone to sleep only an hour or two earlier.

3 out of 18

I used to be high-energy, but now it’s almost impossible to get out of bed in the morning.

4 out of 18

I feel hopeless about my future. 

5 out of 18


I worry that my friends are hanging out without me, and that they don’t like me anymore.

6 out of 18


I don’t find pleasure or joy in life. 

7 out of 18


Simple tasks that I used to do seem so hard to do lately.

8 out of 18


I think about how I might end my life.

9 out of 18



Things that I used to finish in a flash – like washing the dishes – seem to take forever to accomplish. 


10 out of 18



Even when my friends extend a kind gesture or invitation, I feel sad.


11 out of 18

I do tasks sluggishly. Cleaning the house is a slow plod – like walking through thick mud.

12 out of 18

Even when reading a book that usually would interest me, I find myself reading the same paragraph over and over and then lose interest after a couple of pages.

13 out of 18


I feel irritable in my skin all the time. It makes me constantly uncomfortable.

14 out of 18


I don’t feel full of life.

15 out of 18



The scale doesn’t lie, but I can’t understand how my weight has changed so much without being on a diet.


16 out of 18


My productivity has declined so much lately that I feel I will get in trouble or be fired by my boss any day.

17 out of 18


Even deciding which socks to wear in the morning is proving difficult.

18 out of 18

(Optional) Would you like to receive your depression symptom test results — plus more helpful resources — via email from ADDitude?

Can’t see the self-test questions above? Click here to open this test in a new window.

Depression in Adults: Next Steps

1. Take This Test: Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Adults
2. Take This Test: ADHD Symptoms in Women
3. Take This Test: Autism in Adults
4. Take This Test: Do You Have Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria?
5. Read: Is It ADHD, Depression, or Both?
6. Learn How to Treat Depression

Updated on January 31, 2020

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  1. Not even sure where to start. I saw Dr Dodson 5 years ago and for the first time in my life I actually began to see the world outside add. Unfortunately I’ve move to Atlanta and had Avery understanding primary care physician who followed the plan Dr. Dodson had set up for me. Now I had to change to another physician and 1. She. Must. E 30 years younger than me and2. She would not dream of looking at Dodsons report. She wanted me to go to a psh.hospital and seek treatment for depression. Granted I am depressed because I’m not medicated accurately.I have laid in my bed all day with no motivation. On top I have severe ulcerative colitis brought on I’m sure from working 12 to 14 hours a day at a middle school who after 3 years did not ask me to return. I’m 63 years old now unemployed,living with a friend ,and spending what savings I have left. I have no retirement because I spent 30 years working in private schools and running my own tutorial business for Adhd add dyslexia and well you get the picture.

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