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Stress & Coping Self-Test

Instructions: Answer all 18 of the following questions about how you feel and how things have been going with you during the past month. Mark the response that best applies to you.
Question	A	B 	C	D	E	F	
How have you been feeling 
in general?	5 – in excellent frame of mind	4 – in a very good mood	3 – in a good mood mostly	2 – my mood has been up and down	1 – in a poor frame of mind mostly	0 – in a very poor frame of mind	
Have you been bothered by nervousness?	
5 – not at all	
4 – a little	3 – some, enough to bother me	
2- yes, quite a bit	
1 – yes, very much so	0 – extremely so to the point I could not work	
Have you been in firm control or your behavior, thoughts, emotions & feelings?	
5 – yes definitely so	
4 – yes for the most part	
3 – generally so	
2 – not too well	1 – no and I am somewhat troubled by that	0 – no and I am very troubled by that	
Having you been feeling so sad, discouraged or hopeless or had so many problems that you wondered if anything was worthwhile?	
5 – not at all	
4 – a little	
3 – some, enough to bother me	
2 – yes, quite a bit	
1 – yes very much so	0 – extremely so to the point that I have just about given up	
Have you been feeling that you were under strain, stress or pressure?	
5 – not at all	
4 – a little	3 – about the same amount of pressure	2 – more than usual	1 – quite a bit of pressure	0- yes, almost more than I could bear	
How happy or satisfied have you been with your personal life?	5- extremely happy	4 – very happy	3 – fairly happy	2- somewhat satisfied	1 – somewhat dissatisfied	0- very dissatisfied	
Have you had any reason to wonder if you were losing your mind or memory, or losing control over the way you act, talk, think or feel?	
5 – not at all	
4- only a little	
3 – some but not enough to be concerned	
2 – some and I have been a little concerned	
1 – some and I am quite concerned	
0 – yes a lot and I am very concerned	
Have you been anxious, worried or upset?	
5 – not at all	
4 – a little	3 – some, enough to bother me	
2 – quite a bit	
1 – yes, very much so	0 – yes, extremely so to the point of being sick or almost sick	
How often have you awakened refreshed and rested?	5 – every day	4 – almost every day	3 – fairly often	2 – less than half the time	1 – rarely	0 – none of the time	
Have you been bothered by an illness, bodily disorder, pain, or fear about your health?	5 – not at all	4 – a little	3 – some of the time	2 – yes a good bit of the time	1 – yes, most of the time	0 – yes all the time	
Has your daily life been full of things that were interesting to you?	5 – yes all of the time	4 – most of the time	3 – yes, a good bit of the time	2 – some of the time	1 – a little	0 – not at all	
Have you been feeling down-hearted and blue?	5 – not at all	4 – a little	3  - some of the time	2 – yes a good bit of the time	1 – yes most of the time	0 – yes all of the time	
Have you been feeling emotionally stable and sure
of yourself?	5 – yes all of the time	4 – most of the time	3 – yes, a good bit of the time	2 – some of the time	1 – a little	0 – not at all	
Have you been feeling tired, worn out, used-up, or exhausted?	5 – not at all	4 – a little	3  - some of the time	2 – yes a good bit of the time	1 – yes most of the time	0 – yes all of the time	

 ADD UP THE NUMBERS _____________________

Question	Check the number on the scale (from 0-10) that seems closest to how
you have generally been feeling during the past month.	
How concerned or worried have
you been about your health?	⬜ 10            ⬜ 9            ⬜ 8            ⬜ 7            ⬜ 6            ⬜ 5            ⬜ 4            ⬜ 3            ⬜ 2            ⬜ 1           ⬜ 0  
Not at all concerned                                                                                                                                                               Very concerned                              	
How relaxed or tense have you
been?	⬜ 10            ⬜ 9            ⬜ 8            ⬜ 7            ⬜ 6            ⬜ 5            ⬜ 4            ⬜ 3            ⬜ 2            ⬜ 1           ⬜ 0  
Very relaxed                                                                                                                                                                                       Very tense                              	
How much energy, pep, or vitality have you had?	⬜ 10            ⬜ 9            ⬜ 8            ⬜ 7            ⬜ 6            ⬜ 5            ⬜ 4            ⬜ 3            ⬜ 2            ⬜ 1           ⬜ 0  
Very energetic, dynamic                                                                                                                                         No energy at all, listless	
How depressed or cheerful have
you been?	⬜ 10            ⬜ 9            ⬜ 8            ⬜ 7            ⬜ 6            ⬜ 5            ⬜ 4            ⬜ 3            ⬜ 2            ⬜ 1           ⬜ 0  
 Very cheerful                                                                                                                                                                             Very depressed                            	

ADD UP THE NUMBERS _____________________
ADD BOTH TOGETHER FOR YOUR TOTAL SCORE ___________
(Your total score should be between 0 and 110.)

Scoring
Coping Score	Stress/Coping Description	Population	
76-110	Coping well. You are in the
“Positive Well Being” zone.
	65.0%
	
71-75	Marginal	9.1%	
56-70	Not coping very well.
You are in the “Stress” zone.
	16.3%	
0-55	Not coping well at all.
You are in the “Distress” zone.
	9.6%	

Source: National Center for Health Statistics. NHANES Study.