What Do I Say When a Client Asks If They Have Depression?

When a client asks "Do I have depression?", acknowledge why the question matters, say honestly what your role is and is not, and ask what made them wonder. Reflect what they describe in their own words. Do not diagnose, rule anything out, or promise an answer. Take the real question to your supervisor.

This is wording practice with a fictional adult. It is not a screening tool, it does not teach how to assess anyone, and it cannot say what any trainee may or may not do. Scope depends on your program, license rules, setting and supervisor. If a real person mentions hopelessness or harming themselves, stop the wording drill and follow your site's risk procedure.

Why this question deserves a careful answer

A person asking this often wants clarity, permission to take their experience seriously, or a name for something. Public health-information pages say that only a provider can diagnose and that symptoms vary and overlap with other problems, which is why a quick yes or no from you does not help them. What helps in the room is that they feel heard and that they know what happens next.

Four steps for a practice rep

1. Acknowledge the question. "That's an important thing to ask." No hurry to answer.
2. Be clear about your role. Say in plain language what you can and cannot do. Your supervisor can give you the wording your site uses.
3. Ask what led to the question. "What have you been noticing?" Reflect what they say without labeling it.
4. Say the next step. For example, "I'd like to bring your question to my supervisor so I can tell you what the options are." Promise only what is true.

A short fictional exchange

Role card: A fictional adult in their twenties has had a few conversations with a trainee about sleep and energy. They read something online and ask directly. The role card says the trainee does not give diagnoses in this setting and will check with a supervisor.

Client: "Do I have depression? Can you just tell me?"

Student: "That's an important question, and I want to take it seriously. I'm not able to give you a diagnosis. What made you wonder?"

Client: "I haven't felt like doing anything in weeks. I read about it."

Student: "Weeks of not feeling like doing anything. That sounds heavy. I'd like to bring your question to my supervisor so I can tell you what the options are. Is it okay if I come back to you with that next time?"

The student acknowledges the weight, avoids both a label and a flat refusal, and says what will happen next. With a real person, "weeks of not feeling like doing anything" is also a cue to tell your supervisor promptly and to follow your site's procedure for any safety question; the drill does not replace that. The role card makes the scope explicit; the exercise does not claim it applies to every trainee.

Two harder branches

"So you're saying I don't have it?" Try: "No, I'm not saying that either. I can't tell you yes or no. I can listen to what you're describing, and I'll ask my supervisor how we find out." Do not rule anything out.

"Everyone says I'm fine." Try: "It sounds like what you feel doesn't match what others see. Tell me more about that gap." Reflect it; do not argue with it.

Common mistakes

• Answering "no" to reassure. That is still a diagnosis, just in the other direction.
• Listing symptoms to check. That turns the conversation into a screening you aren't practicing here.
• Hiding behind policy. "I can't talk about that" with no next step leaves the person alone with the question.
• Promising an answer by a date. Say what you will do, not what will result.
• Treating the rep as a safety check. Real worry about safety goes through your site's procedure.

Printable worksheet

Redo prompt: Same question, but the person asks about a different condition they read about. Does your wording change? Should it?

Practicing this

Open-ended questions help with "what made you wonder?", and reflection of feeling with what comes back.

Try a free SeatTime conversation for more wording practice with a fictional AI client. Feedback is AI-generated and can be wrong. It cannot answer a real person's question about their health.

Sources and further reading

• Columbia Go Ask Alice: Am I depressed?, a university health-information page saying that a provider diagnoses and that symptoms vary. Consumer health information; used only for that framing. Checked October 24, 2026.
• Supanote: Can therapists diagnose?, a vendor blog saying it depends on license, training, state law and setting. Used to support "it depends"; not a legal source. Checked October 24, 2026.

All role cards and replies are original fiction. Sources are context, not endorsement, and make no statement about any trainee's scope.

Frequently asked questions