How a doctor assessed my 'depression'

I saw a doctor the other day - just an NHS GP - and she told me to fill a form to assess whether I'm depressed. I had to choose from alternatives like 'I feel happy and content most of the time' - 'I cry more than before' - 'I'm crying all the time' etc. and you get points depending on your answers - the more points you get, the more depressed you are..

My result was three points more than the upper limit of 'normal' - so according to this, I'm mildly depressed. Am I crazy in thinking this 'test' was idiotic? Like, I chose 'I cry more than before' - of course I do, as I've dealt with trauma in therapy and am now grieving my childhood losses (among them being an emotional orphan).. So of course I'm going to cry! I think it's a good thing.. isn't it?? I feel it's healthy instead of an illness!

There were several other questions where I scored one or two points, and each of those have an explanation I feel makes my feelings and reactions normal. Think I just needed to vent now as I'm so angry that something so simplistic gets me diagnosed with depression.. Ugh.

In my opinion, it's a bit complicated.

I personally think taking ONE kind of test, with ONE set of questions, only ONCE, has some big limits. What if the questions weren't clear? What if the person taking the test was worried/anxious/sad/tired etc. and that didn't allow them to think clearly? What if the questions of that one specific test didn't address other significant symptoms? And we could go on and on... This is why a test doesn't necessarily define your situation, or you as a person. Most of the time, it really doesn't. (The greatest example of this is the IQ test, but that's another story.)
Moreover some of the symptoms of depression, anxiety and PTSD are actually the same or pretty similar.

However we should also consider that people who suffer from depression usually don't realise it. Of course if - for example - a person is feeling suicidal and self harming that's kind of a sure sign they suffer from depression. But in other cases it might not be as easy to diagnose. I don't know your story or current situation, but if I had to give you advice, I'd say to wait and see. Maybe talk about it to your GP/therapist.

Best wishes

I agree tests alone aren't enough. How about doing things? Do you feel like working, studying, cleaning, cooking, ... etc. Different things can lead to depression.

Unfortunately, that's pretty typical. I hate the psychiatric diagnostic system.

Were they suggesting some kind of depression treatment? Did they diagnose a particular depressive disorder such as MDD? Or were they just using "depression" in their notes as a weird shorthand for "this person is super sad right now."

It's hard to tell the difference between "disorder" sadness and regular sadness, but I have some experience because I have MDD/dysthymia in remission. I'm normally treated for psychiatric conditions by my PCP, but since the ADHD meds weren't working very well, I went to a psychiatrist and that entailed a full diagnostic/intake appointment. In addition to re-diagnosing me with ADHD, he also said I was "still moderately depressed"... because I'm sad about having untreated ADHD! I'm pretty sure he would have diagnosed me with some kind of depressive disorder even if I didn't have it.

Unfortunately, these tests are often too simplistic
(And sometimes can be very unhelpful, and wrong )
And so was the older method of GP's questioning

A fellow uk bear

I always hated that test. My GP used to get me to fill one out every time I went. Thankfully that has stopped now...

It is not a realistic or reliable way to measure depression at all...

These kinds of tests are absolutely no substitute for verbal questions & answers and discussion.

If the form is all they're using, then that's inefficient and outright dismissive.

I would insist on a referral.

Gosh, it seems like they're using the old questionnaire as well. My PDOC uses an older questionaire too, but the best one is the DHQ-9 (at least in my opinion). There's less questions, it's easier to understand, and more accurate.