Adult ADHD Self-Test (ASRS v1.1): Understanding Your Symptoms
Have you ever wondered why staying focused, managing your time, or getting started on everyday tasks can feel so difficult?
Maybe you've spent years telling yourself to be more organized, stop procrastinating, or simply try harder. Yet, despite your efforts, you keep running into the same difficulties.
For some people, these experiences may be related to Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). For others, anxiety, stress, sleep difficulties, or other factors may contribute to similar challenges.
The Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1) can help you reflect on some of these experiences. Although it cannot diagnose ADHD, it can be a useful starting point for understanding your concerns and deciding whether further professional support might be helpful.
ASRS-V1.1（Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale Version 1.1）
The Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1) was developed in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) to help identify possible ADHD-related symptoms in adults.
The full checklist contains 18 questions, while the shorter six-item screener focuses on key symptoms that may warrant further evaluation.
The questions ask about your experiences over the past six months, including attention, organization, restlessness, and difficulties completing everyday tasks.
How to use the questionnaire:
Access the questionnaire using the link below.
Answer based on your experiences over the past six months.
Follow the scoring instructions provided with the specific questionnaire.
The six-item ASRS v1.1 screener uses particular response thresholds rather than simply adding all responses into a total score.
Please note: This is a screening tool, not a diagnostic assessment. A screening result cannot independently confirm or rule out ADHD.
How ADHD Counselling Can Help
At HouseYourMind Counselling & Psychology, I support adults navigating ADHD-related concerns, including procrastination, executive functioning challenges, emotional regulation, self-criticism, and relationship difficulties.
My approach looks beyond symptoms and productivity. Together, we can explore how these patterns affect your everyday life, understand the emotional experiences that accompany them, and develop practical strategies that fit your circumstances.
I also recognize how cultural expectations, family experiences, and the pressure to achieve can influence how we understand our difficulties.
I offer counselling in English and Mandarin, with in-person appointments in downtown Edmonton and virtual services in eligible Canadian provinces.
If you're curious about whether counselling might be helpful, you're welcome to book a free 15–20-minute consultation.
What Happens After an ADHD Self-Test?
Maybe you recognized yourself in several of the questions. Perhaps you've experienced these challenges for years but never quite understood why certain things seem more difficult for you.
You might find yourself putting off important tasks, feeling overwhelmed by everyday responsibilities, or becoming frustrated when your intentions don't translate into action.
Sometimes, the difficult part isn't only the attention or organization itself. It's how these repeated experiences can gradually affect your confidence, relationships, and the way you see yourself.
A self-test can help you notice patterns, but it doesn't tell the whole story.
Whether or not ADHD turns out to be the explanation, the difficulties you're experiencing deserve to be understood.
Understanding ADHD Beyond Attention Difficulties
ADHD isn't simply about having trouble paying attention. It can also affect executive functioning—the mental processes that help us organize, prioritize, begin tasks, regulate impulses, and manage everyday demands.
Research suggests that ADHD involves differences in brain networks associated with attention, motivation, and self-regulation. Neurotransmitters such as dopamine and norepinephrine play important roles in these processes, although ADHD cannot be explained by a simple chemical imbalance.
This may help explain why someone can feel genuinely motivated to complete a task yet still struggle to get started, or why certain activities hold their attention while everyday responsibilities feel overwhelming.
Understanding these patterns allows us to move beyond assumptions about laziness or lack of effort and become more curious about the difficulties someone is experiencing.
How Is ADHD Formally Evaluated?
A formal ADHD assessment involves more than completing a questionnaire or identifying a few familiar symptoms.
Qualified healthcare professionals typically consider developmental history, longstanding patterns of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity, and how these experiences affect functioning across different settings, such as work, education, relationships, and everyday life.
Clinicians use established diagnostic criteria, including the DSM-5-TR, while also considering whether other factors—such as anxiety, depression, trauma-related experiences, or sleep difficulties—could contribute to similar challenges.
An assessment may involve clinical interviews, standardized rating scales, and additional information about childhood or current functioning when appropriate.
What If I Want a Formal ADHD Diagnosis?
At HouseYourMind, my current ADHD-related services focus on counselling and psychological support rather than comprehensive ADHD diagnostic assessments.
If you're looking for a formal evaluation, I can help you explore appropriate assessment or referral options.
You don't need a confirmed ADHD diagnosis to seek counselling for procrastination, emotional regulation, self-criticism, or difficulties with everyday functioning.
Common ADHD Screening and Assessment Tools
Mental health and healthcare professionals may use different instruments when screening for or evaluating ADHD. Each tool serves a different purpose.
Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1)
A self-report screening questionnaire that helps identify possible ADHD-related symptoms in adults. It is not intended to provide a diagnosis on its own.
Diagnostic Interview for ADHD in Adults (DIVA-5)
A structured clinical interview based on DSM-5 criteria that helps appropriately trained professionals explore ADHD symptoms during childhood and adulthood, including their impact on daily functioning.
Barkley Adult ADHD Rating Scale (BAARS-IV)
A standardized rating scale used to assess current ADHD symptoms and childhood symptom history. It can contribute information to a broader clinical evaluation.
These tools support clinical decision-making, but no single questionnaire or rating scale can independently establish an ADHD diagnosis.
Exploring Further Support
If attention difficulties, emotional regulation, or self-criticism are affecting your everyday life, you can learn more about my ADHD counselling services and anxiety therapy.
You can also access this resource in Mandarin: