Complex PTSD Test (C-PTSD): Explore Trauma Symptoms and Their Impact on Daily Life
This CPTSD test screens for trauma symptoms and difficulties with emotions, self-worth, and relationships. Adapted from the ITQ, it gives an instant symptom breakdown, not a diagnosis of complex PTSD.
Reviewed by David A. Brooks, PhD, ABPP, ABN 
Complex PTSD Test (C-PTSD) is a free, confidential 12-question self-assessment, informed by the validated ITQ. It takes about 8 minutes, runs entirely in your browser, and gives you a plain-language score across 3 interpretation bands plus an optional in-depth report. It is an educational screening, not a diagnosis.
Two layers of complex post-traumatic stress, measured together
Complex PTSD combines core post-traumatic stress symptoms with persistent difficulties regulating emotions, a negative sense of self, and problems sustaining close relationships. This complex PTSD test explores those areas using adapted ITQ questions; the symptom summary can support a clinical conversation.
Core PTSD symptoms
The six ITQ items covering the three clusters of ICD-11 PTSD: re-experiencing the event in the here and now, avoiding reminders of it, and a persistent sense of current threat such as being on guard or easily startled.
Self & relationships (DSO)
The six ITQ items covering disturbances in self-organization: trouble calming down or feeling shut down, deep feelings of failure or worthlessness, and difficulty feeling close to other people. This layer is what distinguishes CPTSD.
A breakdown, not just a total
You get separate scores for the PTSD layer and the DSO layer. A DSO-heavy pattern and a PTSD-heavy pattern often point to different therapeutic needs, and seeing them side by side is more useful than one number. The relative scores cannot determine a treatment plan; a clinician also considers impairment, history, safety, and your preferences.
| Feature | Typical free quiz | Psychology.com |
|---|---|---|
| The 12 core ITQ symptom items | Rarely | Yes, faithful wording |
| PTSD vs DSO breakdown | No | Yes, both layers scored |
| Honest about the ICD-11 vs DSM-5 status | Usually glossed over | Yes, explained plainly |
| Clinician-reviewed interpretation | Rarely | Yes, clinician reviewed |
| Optional in-depth personalized report | No | Yes, written to your exact scores |
| Confidential (no data sent) | Often tracked | Runs in your browser |
How scoring works
Answers are scored 0–48 in total. Your result falls into one of 3 bands:
| Score | Band | What it suggests |
|---|---|---|
| 0–15 | Few signs of complex post-traumatic stress | You reported few of the symptoms this screening measures. That is reassuring for this measure, and your experience still matters more than any number. |
| 16–27 | Some signs worth exploring | You reported a moderate level of the symptoms this screening measures. That is worth exploring with someone trained in trauma, gently and without alarm. |
| 28–48 | Many signs consistent with complex post-traumatic stress | You reported many of the symptoms people with CPTSD describe. Please treat this as a clear signal to talk with a trauma-trained professional, not as a verdict. |
Common signs of complex PTSD in daily life
This complex PTSD test, also called a CPTSD quiz, helps you describe trauma-related symptoms and difficulties with emotions, self-worth, and relationships. Its result suggests areas to discuss with a clinician. It cannot establish whether you meet the criteria for complex PTSD or determine what caused your difficulties. The 12 ITQ items translate into everyday experiences that do not always sound like a textbook description of trauma. On the PTSD side, that can look like snapping to attention when a door slams, replaying an old argument late at night, or steering conversations away from certain topics without quite knowing why. On the self and relationships side, it can look like assuming you are the problem in every conflict, going flat and distant when a relationship gets close, or feeling permanently behind on being okay even when things are objectively fine.
What tends to set this apart from an ordinary hard stretch is duration and spread: the pattern has lasted months or years rather than days, and it shows up across most relationships and situations rather than one specific trigger. That spread is exactly what the self and relationships (DSO) layer on this page is built to capture.
These examples need context. Replaying an upsetting conversation is not automatically traumatic re-experiencing: the ITQ asks about the sense that the experience is happening again in the present. Likewise, feeling detached or self-critical can have different explanations. The VA National Center for PTSD recommends considering overlapping conditions during assessment, alongside the history of trauma and the effect on everyday functioning.
What to do after this complex PTSD quiz
Whatever your result, the most useful next step is usually the same: bring it to a trauma-trained therapist rather than trying to settle the question alone. If your PTSD layer scored higher, our PTSD Test can help you describe those symptoms in more detail. If the self and relationships (DSO) layer stood out, the Emotional Dysregulation Test looks more closely at the emotion-regulation piece, and Grounding Techniques or Window of Tolerance exercises are often a good starting point for steadying yourself between sessions.
The Psychology.com therapist directory lets you search specifically for trauma-trained therapists, at no cost and with no account required. Healing from complex trauma is typically gradual, and reaching out is itself the first phase of it.
You can also return to the Psychology.com tests hub to choose a self-assessment for a separate concern. Before an appointment, note what has become difficult at work, in relationships, or in ordinary responsibilities. You can explain that discussing details feels overwhelming and ask how the clinician will pace the assessment. Support does not depend on reaching a particular score.
A higher DSO score does not, by itself, prescribe a treatment sequence. The VA National Center for PTSD describes encouraging evidence for existing trauma-focused treatments and reports that research has not established a general advantage for starting with a separate skills phase. Ask about the reasoning behind any proposed plan, how it fits your current safety and preferences, and how progress will be reviewed.
What does my CPTSD test score mean?
The total summarizes the symptoms you reported; it is not a probability of having complex PTSD. The full International Trauma Questionnaire also asks about functional impairment related to PTSD and DSO symptoms. This page does not include those impairment questions, so its total cannot substitute for the full assessment, even if the result sounds familiar.
Look at the experiences behind the score and bring examples of their impact to a clinician. A low total can still accompany a specific difficulty that deserves attention. A high total cannot show whether every required symptom cluster is present. The methodology explains how this educational scoring differs from the original instrument.
Methodology & sources
This test is informed by the International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ; Cloitre et al., 2018), the freely available, validated self-report measure of ICD-11 PTSD and complex PTSD. It reproduces the 12 core symptom items: six covering the PTSD clusters (re-experiencing, avoidance, and sense of current threat, two items each) and six covering disturbances in self-organization or DSO (affect dysregulation, negative self-concept, and relationship disturbances, two items each). Item wording is lightly adapted for readability while preserving the meaning of the validated instrument. The PTSD items ask about the past month; the DSO items ask how you typically feel, as in the original ITQ.
One honest note on scoring. The real ITQ does not use a simple sum. It uses a per-cluster algorithm: an item counts as endorsed at a rating of 2 (Moderately) or higher, PTSD requires at least one endorsed item from each PTSD cluster plus functional impairment, and CPTSD requires the PTSD criteria plus at least one endorsed item from each DSO cluster and related impairment. The 0 to 48 total and the bands on this page are an educational simplification that gives you a readable overall picture. They are not the diagnostic algorithm, and only a licensed clinician can assess ICD-11 CPTSD. Treat your result as a structured starting point for reflection or a conversation with a professional.
The VA National Center for PTSD describes the full ITQ as an 18-item measure covering symptoms and their effects on functioning. This page uses the symptom questions with adapted wording and an educational total, omitting the separate impairment questions. Published validation of the original ITQ does not establish diagnostic accuracy for this online adaptation.
References
- Cloitre M, Shevlin M, Brewin CR, Bisson JI, Roberts NP, Maercker A, Karatzias T, Hyland P. The International Trauma Questionnaire: development of a self-report measure of ICD-11 PTSD and complex PTSD. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2018;138(6):536-546. doi.org/10.1111/acps.12956
- Brewin CR, Cloitre M, Hyland P, et al. A review of current evidence regarding the ICD-11 proposals for diagnosing PTSD and complex PTSD. Clin Psychol Rev. 2017;58:1-15. doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2017.09.001
- Karatzias T, Shevlin M, Fyvie C, et al. Evidence of distinct profiles of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) based on the new ICD-11 Trauma Questionnaire (ICD-TQ). J Affect Disord. 2017;207:181-187. doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.09.032
- World Health Organization. International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision (ICD-11): 6B41 Complex post-traumatic stress disorder. Geneva: WHO; 2022. icd.who.int/browse/2025-01/mms/en#585833559
- VA National Center for PTSD. International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ). ptsd.va.gov/professional/assessment/adult-sr/itq.asp
- VA National Center for PTSD. Complex PTSD: Assessment and Treatment. ptsd.va.gov/professional/treat/txessentials/complex_ptsd_assessment.asp
For clinicians: The clinical practice around this screen, written for practitioners: Trauma-informed care in practice
Cite this source
Psychology.com. (2026, September 16). Complex PTSD Test (C-PTSD). Psychology.com. https://psychology.com/tests/cptsd
Complex PTSD Test (C-PTSD) FAQ
What is the difference between PTSD and complex PTSD?
PTSD can develop after any traumatic event and centers on re-experiencing, avoidance, and a sense of ongoing threat. Complex PTSD includes all of that plus a second layer: lasting difficulty managing emotions, a deeply negative view of yourself, and trouble feeling close to people. It is most often linked to trauma that was prolonged or repeated, frequently interpersonal and starting early in life, such as ongoing abuse, neglect, or captivity. For classic PTSD screening, our PTSD test uses the brief PC-PTSD-5 screener.
How is this different from the childhood trauma (ACE) test?
The childhood trauma test counts adverse experiences that happened before age 18. It measures exposure, what happened to you. This test measures current symptoms, how post-traumatic stress and its deeper effects on self-worth and relationships are showing up in your life now. Both can be useful: one describes history, the other describes the present. The dissociation test can help you describe detachment or memory gaps, while the BPD test asks about emotion and relationship patterns; neither can determine which condition explains your experiences.
Is complex PTSD in the DSM-5?
No, and it is fair to say so plainly. The ICD-11, the World Health Organization's diagnostic system used in much of the world, recognizes complex PTSD as its own diagnosis. The DSM-5, the manual most US clinicians use, does not list it separately; it folds some of the same features into a broader PTSD definition. Many trauma specialists still find the CPTSD framework clinically useful, and a US clinician can absolutely assess and treat these symptoms even if the label on paper reads differently.
Can complex PTSD heal?
Yes. Recovery is common with the right support, and it is usually gradual rather than instant. Many clinicians use a phase-based approach: first building safety and skills for managing intense emotions, then processing the traumatic memories, then rebuilding connection and a steadier sense of self. Evidence-based tools along the way include trauma-focused CBT, EMDR, and skills drawn from DBT for emotion regulation. The relational wounds at the heart of CPTSD often heal within a safe, consistent therapeutic relationship.
Is this test really confidential?
Yes. It runs entirely in your browser. Your individual answers are scored in your browser and are never sent to us or linked to you. They stay in this tab so you can return to your result, and closing or clearing the tab clears them. If you ask us to email the PDF, we receive your summary scores with your email address, never your individual answers. No account is needed.
How do I know if I have complex PTSD?
You cannot know for certain from a quiz. Signs people describe include feeling on guard or easily startled long after the danger has passed, avoiding reminders of what happened, going emotionally numb, feeling worthless or like a failure, and struggling to feel close to people. If several of these have lasted a while and touch most areas of your life, a trauma-trained clinician can properly assess whether CPTSD, PTSD, or something else fits.
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