Psychological distress self-check (K10)

Name: K10 Psychological Distress Test: Free Self-Check
Creator: Malady Wise

Need help now? In Australia call Lifeline on 13 11 14 (24/7) or 000 in an emergency. Elsewhere, see support lines by country or findahelpline.com.

The K10 (Kessler Psychological Distress Scale) is a 10-question checklist about feelings of anxiety and low mood in the past 4 weeks. It’s widely used in Australia by GPs, mental health services and national health surveys. It takes about 2 minutes. It’s a screening check, not a diagnosis.

For adults (18 and over). For young people, talk to a GP, or contact Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 or headspace (Australia).

Private by design: your answers stay in this browser tab. They aren’t saved, sent or tracked, and they disappear when you close or refresh the page. (Like every page on Malady Wise, we count anonymous page visits, without cookies, but never your answers or score.)

These questions are about how you have been feeling in the past 4 weeks. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel…

1. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel tired out for no good reason?

3. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel so nervous that nothing could calm you down?

4. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel hopeless?

5. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel restless or fidgety?

6. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel so restless you could not sit still?

7. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel depressed?

8. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel that everything was an effort?

9. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel so sad that nothing could cheer you up?

10. In the past 4 weeks, about how often did you feel worthless?

What to do next

In Australia

See your GP. Take your score with you if it helps start the conversation. Your GP can talk through how you’ve been, check for physical causes (such as thyroid problems, anaemia or medicine side effects) and discuss options.
Mental Health Treatment Plan. If it would help, your GP can prepare a Mental Health Treatment Plan. Under the Better Access program, this gives Medicare rebates for up to 10 individual sessions a calendar year with a psychologist or another eligible mental health professional. Since 1 November 2025, the plan is made by your usual GP or at the practice where you’re registered with MyMedicare.
Free help without a referral: MindSpot (free online and phone assessment and courses for adults), Medicare Mental Health (formerly Head to Health; phone 1800 595 212, weekdays) and Beyond Blue (24/7 phone and web chat).

Outside Australia

See your GP or family doctor and mention your score.
UK: in England you can refer yourself to NHS Talking Therapies without seeing a GP first.
US: the SAMHSA National Helpline (1-800-662-4357) offers free, confidential treatment referral 24/7, and 988 is there for anyone in distress.
New Zealand: your GP, or call or text 1737 to talk with a trained counsellor.

Things that often help

Tell one person you trust how you’re really going.
Keep regular sleep and wake times, move your body most days, and go easy on alcohol.
Plan one small, doable thing each day that you enjoy or that gives a sense of achievement.
Read more in our depression and anxiety fact sheets.

Support lines

If you or someone else is in danger right now, call your emergency number. To talk to someone, any time:

Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7, or text 0477 13 11 14), Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467, Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636, 13YARN 13 92 76 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Emergency: 000.
Young people in Australia: Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 (24/7, ages 5 to 25) or headspace (ages 12 to 25).
New Zealand: call or text 1737. Emergency: 111.
UK and Ireland: Samaritans 116 123. Emergency: 999 (or 112).
US and Canada: call or text 988. Emergency: 911.
Anywhere else: findahelpline.com lists free helplines in more than 100 countries.

How it works

Each question scores 1 (none of the time) to 5 (all of the time), for a total of 10 to 50.
Australian score ranges (from the National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing): 10–15 low, 16–21 moderate, 22–29 high, 30–50 very high distress.
The K10 measures general distress, not one condition. A high score can reflect depression, anxiety, stress after a hard event, or a mix, and is a reason to talk to your GP.

Common questions

What is the K10?

The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale is a 10-question checklist about how often you’ve felt nervous, hopeless, restless, depressed, worthless or tired out in the past 4 weeks. It was developed in the US and is widely used in Australian health surveys and general practice.

What does my K10 score mean?

Totals range from 10 to 50. In Australia, 10–15 is usually described as low distress, 16–21 moderate, 22–29 high and 30–50 very high. A high or very high score is a good reason to see your GP. The score can’t tell what’s causing the distress.

Can I do this for my teenager?

This version is for adults filling it in about themselves. Teenagers need a check with a GP or a youth service. In Australia, headspace (ages 12 to 25) and Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800, ages 5 to 25) can help.

Are my answers saved?

No. Your answers stay in this browser tab and disappear when you close or refresh the page. Nothing is stored or sent.

About this questionnaire

K10 Copyright © Ronald C. Kessler, PhD. All rights reserved. Use of the K10 is free and doesn’t require formal permission; the authors ask that users acknowledge the copyright and cite the source (Kessler, Harvard). Wording follows the Australian self-report version (“in the past 4 weeks”).

Sources: Kessler RC, Barker PR, Colpe LJ, et al. Screening for serious mental illness in the general population. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2003;60(2):184–189. doi:10.1001/archpsyc.60.2.184. Kessler RC, Andrews G, Colpe LJ, et al. Short screening scales to monitor population prevalences and trends in non-specific psychological distress. Psychol Med 2002;32(6):959–976. doi:10.1017/s0033291702006074. Score ranges: Andrews G, Slade T. Interpreting scores on the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). Aust N Z J Public Health 2001;25(6):494–497. doi:10.1111/j.1467-842x.2001.tb00310.x.

More checks: Depression (PHQ-9) · Anxiety (GAD-7) · Distress (K10)

Reviewed 8 November 2026. General education, not personal medical advice. These checks don’t diagnose any condition; talk to your GP or doctor about your results.