How to write PIP notes for depression
A calm, practical guide to explaining how depression affects your daily life for PIP. This is reference-only and not legal, medical, or benefits advice.
Depression and PIP
Depression can affect energy, motivation, concentration, memory, sleep, and your ability to start and finish even simple tasks. It can also affect self-care, eating, communicating with other people, and leaving the house. These are all things that PIP looks at.
PIP is not based on diagnosis alone. What matters is how depression affects you when doing specific activities, and whether you can do them safely, reliably, repeatedly, and in a reasonable time. Two people with the same diagnosis can be affected very differently, so it is important to describe your own experience in your own words.
One of the hardest things about writing PIP notes for depression is that the condition itself makes it difficult to do. Low motivation, poor concentration, and feeling like nothing matters can all get in the way. If you can, try to write a little at a time rather than doing it all in one go. Ask someone you trust to sit with you while you write, or to read through what you have written and point out things you might have left out.
Writing about depression
Examples: turning a feeling into a clear note
Below are examples of how you might turn a general statement into a clearer, activity-focused note. These are for illustration only and should not be copied into your own form.
“When I am depressed I cannot look after myself.”
“On difficult days I stay in bed most of the day and do not wash or change clothes unless someone prompts me. I often miss meals because I cannot motivate myself to prepare food. Even getting to the bathroom feels like too much effort. This happens three or four days a week.”
“I do not go out much.”
“I have not left my house on my own for several weeks. When I need to go to an appointment, my partner has to come with me because I feel unable to cope alone. I have cancelled GP appointments three times in the last two months because I could not make myself get ready and leave. On most days I do not leave the house at all.”
“I forget to take my tablets.”
“I use a dosette box and phone alarms to remind me to take my medication, but I still miss doses two or three times a week. Sometimes I hear the alarm and think I will do it in a minute, but then I forget completely. My mum calls me each morning to check whether I have taken my tablets, and without that call I would miss them more often.”
Using GuidedPIPs
GuidedPIPs helps you organise depression-related notes by activity, so you can record the impact on self-care, eating, communication, and motivation in a structured way. It walks you through each daily living and mobility activity with guided prompts tailored to your conditions.
You can start for free and decide whether full access is right for you.