An anxiety screening tool based on the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) criteria. Assess your worry levels, physical symptoms, and anxiety patterns.
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health condition worldwide, affecting 301 million people. This free anxiety screening test is inspired by the GAD-7, a clinically validated tool used to assess generalized anxiety. It evaluates symptoms including excessive worry, restlessness, difficulty relaxing, and physical manifestations of anxiety such as muscle tension and sleep disturbance.
This test is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not a diagnostic tool and should not replace professional medical advice. If you are experiencing distress, please consult a licensed healthcare provider.
Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) involves excessive, difficult-to-control worry about a range of everyday situations — work, health, finances, relationships, or just the general future. Unlike normal worry, GAD worry is persistent, out of proportion to the actual situation, and interferes with daily life.
Around 6% of adults experience GAD at some point in their lives, making it one of the most common mental health conditions. It's more prevalent in women than men and often develops gradually in adulthood, though it can begin at any age.
GAD is distinct from phobias, panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder, though these can co-occur. The defining feature of GAD is its generalised nature — the worry isn't focused on one specific thing but tends to shift across many areas.
Anxiety has both psychological and physical symptoms. Psychologically, it shows up as persistent worry, difficulty controlling anxious thoughts, trouble concentrating, irritability, and feeling on edge. Many people describe a sense of dread or anticipating the worst even when there's no clear reason to.
Physically, anxiety activates the body's stress response: muscle tension, headaches, fatigue, gastrointestinal problems, sweating, and sleep disturbances. These physical symptoms are real and significant — anxiety disorders have measurable effects on the body, not just the mind.
Avoidance is one of the most common behavioural effects of anxiety. People avoid situations that trigger anxiety, which provides short-term relief but maintains the anxiety long-term. Recognising avoidance patterns is often an important part of treatment.
This test is based on the Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7), developed by Dr. Robert Spitzer and colleagues. It's one of the most widely used and validated anxiety screening tools in primary care settings worldwide.
The GAD-7 asks about the frequency of seven core anxiety symptoms over the past two weeks. Scores are classified as minimal (0–4), mild (5–9), moderate (10–14), and severe (15–21). These thresholds were established through large-scale validation studies.
A score of 10 or above on the GAD-7 has been shown in clinical research to have good sensitivity and specificity for GAD. However, screening scores cannot replace clinical assessment — other anxiety disorders, medical conditions, and life circumstances all need to be considered.