The following information is provided for educational purposes to help you understand whether your experiences may be consistent with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. This is not a diagnostic tool. A formal diagnosis of PTSD requires comprehensive assessment by a qualified mental health professional.
PTSD Self-Assessment
Based on the PCL-5 — a validated clinical screening tool
This assessment asks about experiences that sometimes follow difficult, stressful, or traumatic events. There are no right or wrong answers. Answer honestly based on how you have been feeling over the past month.
Question 1
In the past month, how much were you bothered by… Repeated, disturbing, and unwanted memories of a stressful experience from the past?
This includes intrusive thoughts, images, or sensory fragments that return without warning.
Your answers are anonymous. No data is shared without your consent.
One more step
Your personalised results are ready. You can view them now, or enter your email to receive a copy along with Dr. Flores' guide to understanding your results.
Your symptom profile
PTSD is assessed across four symptom clusters. Here is how your responses were distributed:
Recommended approaches
Based on your symptom profile, these evidence-based treatments may be most helpful for your presentation. A clinician will work with you to determine the best approach.
This assessment is not a diagnosis. A formal PTSD diagnosis requires evaluation by a licensed mental health professional.
If you are in crisis right now, please call or text 988 — the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Free, confidential, and available 24/7.
The PCL-5: A Clinically Validated Screening Tool
The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) is a 20-item self-report measure widely used by clinicians to assess PTSD symptom severity. It corresponds directly to the DSM-5 PTSD symptom clusters and is validated for use in both clinical and research settings.
The PCL-5 asks you to rate how much you have been bothered by each of 20 symptoms over the past month, on a scale from 0 (Not at all) to 4 (Extremely). A total score of 31 to 33 or above has been shown to be indicative of probable PTSD, though the appropriate cutoff may vary depending on the population and context.
The full PCL-5 is freely available from the National Center for PTSD at the Department of Veterans Affairs: va.gov — PCL-5
Questions to Ask Yourself
If you are wondering whether your experiences may be consistent with PTSD, consider whether you recognise the following across all four symptom clusters:
Re-Experiencing
- Do you have unwanted, distressing memories of a traumatic event that intrude into daily life?
- Do you experience flashbacks — moments in which you feel as though the traumatic event is happening again?
- Do you have recurrent nightmares related to a traumatic experience?
- Do you experience intense distress when reminded of the trauma — by sounds, smells, places, people, or situations?
Avoidance
- Do you actively avoid thoughts, feelings, or memories related to a traumatic event?
- Do you avoid people, places, conversations, activities, or situations that remind you of the trauma?
Negative Changes in Thinking and Mood
- Have you developed persistent negative beliefs about yourself (“I am permanently damaged”), others (“People cannot be trusted”), or the world (“Nowhere is safe”)?
- Do you feel persistent guilt or shame about the traumatic event?
- Do you feel emotionally numb — unable to experience positive emotions like happiness or love?
- Do you feel detached or estranged from other people?
Hyperarousal
- Are you constantly on high alert, watching for signs of danger even in safe environments?
- Do you startle easily at unexpected sounds or movements?
- Do you have significant difficulty sleeping?
- Do you experience episodes of anger or irritability that seem disproportionate to the situation?
If You Recognise These Experiences
Recognising PTSD symptoms in yourself is an important and courageous step. It does not mean you are broken, weak, or permanently damaged. It means your nervous system has been responding, exactly as it was designed to respond, to overwhelming experience — and that the response has outlasted its original context.
PTSD is highly treatable. With evidence-based clinical care, the vast majority of people experience significant and lasting improvement. Many achieve full remission of symptoms.
If you recognise these symptoms in yourself, we encourage you to reach out for professional support. The Trauma Institute’s clinical team can provide assessment, consultation, and referral to appropriate care.
Contact us for an assessment | Find help now | Learn about treatment options