Read Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy for Free Online

Depression Checklist
Total Score
Level of Depression*
0–5
no depression
6–10
normal but unhappy
11–25
mild depression
26–50
moderate depression
51–75
severe depression
76–100
extreme depression
*Anyone with a persistent score above 10 may benefit from professional treatment. Anyone with suicidal feelings should seek an immediate consultation with a mental health professional.
    You can use the BDC with confidence to monitor your progress as well. In my clinical work, I have insisted that every patient must fill out the test on his or her own between all sessions and report the score to me at the beginning of the next session. Changes in the score show me whether the patient is getting better, worse, or staying the same.
    As you apply the various self-help techniques described in this book, take the BDC test at regular intervals to assess your progress objectively. I suggest a minimum of once a week. Compare it to weighing yourself regularly when you’re on a diet. You will notice that various chapters in this book focus on different symptoms of depression. As you learn to overcome these symptoms, you will find that your total score will begin to fall. This will show that you are improving. When your score is under ten, you will be in the range considered normal. When it is under five, you will be feeling especially good. Ideally, I’d like to see your score under five the majority of the time. This is one aim of your treatment.
    Is it safe for depressed individuals to try to help themselves using the principles and methods outlined in this book? The answer is— definitely yes ! This is because the crucial decision to try to help yourself is the key that will allow you to feel better as soon as possible, regardless of how severe your mood disturbance might seem to be.
    Under what conditions should you seek professional help? If your score is between 0 and 5, you are probably feeling good already. This is in the range of normal, and most people with scores this low feel pretty happily contented.
    If your score was between 6 and 10, it is still in the range of normal, but you are probably feeling a bit on the “lumpy” side. There’s room for improvement, a little mental “tune-up,” if you will. The cognitive therapy techniques in this book can often be remarkably helpful in these instances. Problemsin daily living bug all of us, and a change of perspective can often make a big difference in how you feel.
    If your score was between 11 and 25, your depression, at least at this time, is mild and should not be a cause for alarm. You will definitely want to correct this problem, and you may be able to make substantial progress on your own. Systematic self-help efforts along the lines proposed in this book, combined with frank communication on a number of occasions with a trusted friend, may help a great deal. But if your score remains in this range for more than a few weeks, you should consider professional treatment. The help of a therapist or an antidepressant medication may considerably speed your recovery.
    Some of the thorniest depressions I have treated were actually individuals whose scores were in the mild range. Often these individuals had been mildly depressed for years, sometimes for most of their entire life. A mild chronic depression that goes on and on is now called “dysthymic disorder.” Although that is a big, fancy-sounding term, it has a simple meaning. All it means is, “this person is awfully gloomy and negative most of the time.” You probably know someone who is like that, and you may have fallen into spells of pessimism yourself. Fortunately, the same methods in this book that have proven so helpful for severe depressions can also be very helpful for these mild, chronic depressions.
    If you scored between 26 and 50 on the BDC, it means you are moderately depressed. But don’t be fooled by the term, “moderate.” A score in this range can indicate pretty intense suffering. Most of us