Depression Self-Diagnosis: How to Check if Your Feelings are Depression

Daily life is rolling along more or less. You eat, wash up, and do what you need to do. But strangely, there’s nothing to look forward to. Things you used to like are not as fun as before, you are tired but can’t sleep, or conversely, you’re tired no matter how much you sleep. It’s a day where nothing special happened, but you feel like crying, or you get annoyed for no reason.

You just brush it off because you can’t distinguish ‘whether I’m depressed or just sensitive.’ But if that has been repeating for a few weeks, you need to take a proper look. A depression self-diagnosis is the first step to checking your current state of mind.

Feeling Depressed vs. Depression: How Are They Different?

Feeling depressed (depressive mood) is a natural emotion everyone experiences. A drop in mood that comes when you’ve had a hard time, the seasons change, or your body is exhausted. This usually recovers after a few days.

Depression (clinical depression) is different. Lethargy, sadness, and loss of interest lasting for more than 2 weeks are the core. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines depression as persistent sadness and loss of interest in daily life. The important thing is that it is not an issue of willpower. It’s a state where the brain’s serotonin and dopamine secretion patterns have changed, so it cannot be solved just by ‘cheering up.’

A depression self-diagnosis helps grasp that boundary. You need to know where you are right now to decide the next step.

Depression Self-Diagnosis to Check Your Current State

Try checking simply based on the PHQ-9, which is widely used in clinical practice. Check how often these applied to you over the past 2 weeks.

• Interest or pleasure in daily life seems to have almost disappeared.
• You feel down, depressed, or hopeless.
• It’s hard to fall asleep, or conversely, you sleep too much.
• You are tired or have no energy, for no reason.
• You have no appetite, or conversely, you binge eat.
• You feel like a failure, or think you are a burden to your family.
• It is difficult to concentrate and hard to make decisions.
• Your speech or movements seem slower than usual.
• The thought has crossed your mind that it would be better to disappear or die.

1–3 items: High possibility of a temporary depressive mood. Sufficient rest and self-care will help. 4–6 items: Moderate depression. If it has lasted for more than 2 weeks, consider professional counseling. 7 or more items: A state requiring professional help. You don’t have to endure it alone.

Patterns Where Depression Quietly Deepens

Depression doesn’t come suddenly. It builds up slowly. If the patterns below are repeating, it’s a signal.

Numbness replaces sadness

Instead of crying, you feel nothing. You don’t feel happy when good things happen, and you are numb to bad things. This is a state of ‘emotional numbness’ that frequently appears as depression deepens.

Avoiding through being productive

Paradoxically, there’s also a pattern of not looking into your heart while working more or staying busy. You fear the emptiness that will rush in if you stop, so you keep doing something.

All your energy drains over small things

Washing up, eating, sending a single reply. If things that used to be nothing are becoming heavy, it’s a signal that your mind and body are already very exhausted.

Things You Can Try Right Now

Move your body once a day

Even a 10-minute walk is fine. It has been verified in multiple studies that exercise naturally increases serotonin secretion. It doesn’t have to be a special workout. Just going outside and getting some sunlight for a moment makes a difference.

Write down ‘this feeling right now’

It doesn’t have to be a diary format. Try writing even briefly, like ‘Today at 3 PM, lethargic for no reason.’ Research shows that simply expressing emotions in language reduces the amygdala’s response in the brain. Facing it rather than ignoring it is a way to actually feel lighter.

You don’t have to endure it alone

If you are worried about the results of the depression self-diagnosis, you don’t have to try to solve it alone. Contacting a professional counselor or a psychiatry clinic is not weak. Just as you go to the hospital when your body is sick, it’s natural to get professional help when your mind is struggling.

Your emotions right now are not wrong. You’ve just been holding onto them alone for too long.