There is a lot of mental health information on the web, and if you have landed here it's because you may have found an interesting article or you perhaps prefer my approach to the subject of depression. Well, I knew when I was very young that I had a difficult time feeling good. But I have also noticed over the years, how at certain times of my life - I was able to really work through those feelings of depression (which could be called dysthymia).

There were no free quizzes or screenings for me to take when I was young. The only types of quizzes they had for girls my age were things on boys or getting my skin clear!

Certainly no one in my family talked about depression or even admitted that there were some of us suffering from it. I don't even think they really understood what it was. It was as generations before us described it as "The Blues". And as far as they were concerned - there was no cure. It just was what it was.

Well, fast forward to the 21st century and there are oodles of information-packed websites (some good others not so good), offering cautiously curious web surfers the chance to discover if they or someone they know suffers from depression.

While they are certainly not by any means any type of clinical proof of anything -- online depression screenings or depression quizzes serve as an introduction to a topic that many people might have otherwise dismissed, denied, or mistook for something else.

While there are many fancy interactive screenings out there -- I am a person that really likes simplicity. Especially on the web.

I want to know who, what, when, where and why. That's it!

So that's why I have listed below some of my favorite online screenings. While you cannot use them as a replacement for a physician's medical opinion - they will give you an idea of what may be going on with you or an affirmation that there is probably nothing going on but a bad day!

1. Free Depression Screening
I'm partial to this screening because I created it:) over at GirlShrink.com. It is simple but straight forward. When you're finished you will have instant results and some direction on what to do next.

2. Depression Screening - New York University
This depression screening is interactive and I like it because it is out of the MD/Psychiatric Department at my alma mater:) New York University.

3. Cleveland Clinic Screening
You can find this screening written by the Cleveland Clinic on the huge medical site Web MD. While it's not interactive or written by anyone I know:), it is from a reputable source.

***A Word Of Caution***

If you go to any other sites than the ones I listed for mental health information, make sure to look around the home page (especially the bottom of the page) for any sort of pharmaceutical name and/or logo.

Many of these depression sites you will find in ads on the web or at many top search engine positions on the web are drug advertisements disguised as screenings. Chances are on some of these sites, that you will be gently informed about some sort of antidepressant drug to talk to your doctor about.

While many of these drug company sites post a great deal of information about depression - their "drug" agenda is still there which makes me wary of anything on their sites.

Stick to government sites like the National Institutes of Health, or reputable health sites such as Web MD, or sites with a personal slant such as mine here at BellaOnline.

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Lisa Angelettie, "GirlShrink" is an online advice authority. Her site GirlShrink.com is the #1 "Advice & Counseling" site on the web and contributing author of "101 Great Ways To Improve Your Life". Instantly get a FREE Bonus when you sign up for her free Better Choices Ezine. Please visit us for more discussion on this topic in the depression forum to talk about it further. Don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter for topics in the news, new articles, website & book reviews, and other useful mental health resources. Subscribe below.