[archipelago]

I read another post about someone googling their own name here and it coming up. I tried my screen name with just the abbreviation "psych" and all of my posts were right at the top. I had no idea. It's giving me pause.

And here of all places where we are sharing details of our therapy sessions and relationships to our therapists…I don't know. It makes me self-conscious.

I still want to post what I want but I wonder if I should edit myself more.

Did you all realize that these posts are just "out there"?

[Hoppery]

Originally Posted by archipelago

I read another post about someone googling their own name here and it coming up. I tried my screen name with just the abbreviation "psych" and all of my posts were right at the top. I had no idea. It's giving me pause.

And here of all places where we are sharing details of our therapy sessions and relationships to our therapists…I don't know. It makes me self-conscious.

I still want to post what I want but I wonder if I should edit myself more.

Did you all realize that these posts are just "out there"?

I think wherever you post, your out there. But as we are not using names here, how can anyone guess it's you unless you make it obvious?

[A Red Panda]

I made a point to use a screen name that I don't use anywhere else. There's absolutely nothing that would link to me on any other site.

[archipelago]

Well, I don't use this as a screen name on other sites, but I do use it for other reasons. I guess I'm sensitive because I'm training as a therapist and we were told to minimize our "digital footprint." So I took down my Facebook page, which I didn't really use anyway. I do have an article on psychology that has the word archipelago in the site name. I could see a client trying to track down the article by typing "psych" for psychology and the name of my blog since it's a published piece. Then accidentally they would come up with all my posts on here.

[trdleblue]

To me that is the idea of a screen name. If I wanted, or didn't care about people placing me then I would just use my name.

[unaluna]

Yeah its weird. Sometimes it feels very personal. Otoh, we are tedious and inarticulate even on our best days, i think. Otherwise somebody would be paying us for our brilliant words.

[healed84]

Everything that we all post on the internet is "out there." Like others, I chose a screen name that I have never used on any other sites. Also, when you google your screen name- that is all it brings up is your screen name and your posts and profile info.. So, if you want to ensure your privacy- be sure not to add personal info in your profile.. So, people really can't find you, unless they know your screen name here on pc or your name is plastered somewhere on your profile or in your posts.

[archipelago]

ROFLMAO!! Yeah, hankster, touche! Got me in a knot of taking myself too seriously. Most of what I say, though I am trying hard, is not memorable so it is probably fine if someone did happen across it. And the idea that they would look in the first place I guess now that I think about it is pretty absurd. Phew!

Originally Posted by archipelago

I read another post about someone googling their own name here and it coming up. I tried my screen name with just the abbreviation "psych" and all of my posts were right at the top. I had no idea. It's giving me pause.

And here of all places where we are sharing details of our therapy sessions and relationships to our therapists…I don't know. It makes me self-conscious.

I still want to post what I want but I wonder if I should edit myself more.

Did you all realize that these posts are just "out there"?

Yes, I'm very conscious that everything I post here is going to be searchable in various search engines. It's another reason why PC is not a "safe" place. We might address our posts to a group of people we have gotten to know reasonably well, but as the years pass, every thread is read by hundreds of people who never log in (although many of those "people" are search engine robots who index each and every thread.) Everything we write here is essentially public, and the posting archives are indexed and searchable just as much as the most recent threads are.

Neither my current user name nor my previous name are usernames I have used anywhere else, and I avoid writing things like the names of my pets, or other things that could potentially lead people I know to this site. But I'm always worried about it anyway.

[healed84]

Originally Posted by archipelago

Well, I don't use this as a screen name on other sites, but I do use it for other reasons. I guess I'm sensitive because I'm training as a therapist and we were told to minimize our "digital footprint." So I took down my Facebook page, which I didn't really use anyway. I do have an article on psychology that has the word archipelago in the site name. I could see a client trying to track down the article by typing "psych" for psychology and the name of my blog since it's a published piece. Then accidentally they would come up with all my posts on here.

Interesting... I know different Ts have different perspectives on this. My T is pretty much all over the internet both professionally and personally and it is so easy to find him.

I just googled my username from PC and some of my info did pop up! Wow! I never thought about google! I do have a strange user name so hopefully there's nothing to link me. This makes me paranoid! Ugh!

[healingme4me]

I get PC links, with mine.

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[Chopin99]

Hi Arch. As a fellow t-in-training, I understand not wanting to have a huge digital footprint. My name here is one I used in the distant past. However, I've had to watch my online presence for a while as I've worked in the mental health sector for a long time. A blog I kept ended up biting me in the butt about 5 years ago. So I plan to be as discreet as I've been since then.

[stopdog]

In general, I do not believe anyone is as unique as they think they are. There are patterns to responses and types of responders here. But if it is worrisome to you, I think they will let you change your screen name to something else if you want.

[archipelago]

No, like I said to hankster, I was getting all tied into a knot when I really now see that though a potential it is not a probability that some future client would be able to figure anything out from what I have said.

It did make me think though how many of us know this about this site. So I thought I'd post, particularly here where lots of personal details about therapy and ourselves are revealed. I feel less sure that I should have shared details about my shrink. I still think I will think twice before typing just anything into the boxes.

[stopdog]

I personally don't think details, other than name, address, and phone number of anyone's therapist is all that identifiable either. They seem no more unique and than anyone else to me and I doubt one would be able to identify a therapist any more than a client from these posts.
Plus, I know someone who has seen one of the two I see. We describe the woman very differently.
(I actually never really described how I saw the woman to the other client, but the other client/my acquaintance talked about her therapist interactions quite a bit - and if someone heard my description and heard the other client's description - I doubt anyone would think we were speaking of the same person).

I agree! I think it will make me think twice about details I post. I erased my profile just for peace of mind.

I hear you, Archipelago.

Ever since the time I tried to edit a post here that had TMI for my comfort, I have been more cautious with putting personal stuff out there because i found out you can't edit a post here after 4 hours. Ever since, I am trying very hard to be less open while still maintaining enough balance to engage in conversation/try to be supportive of others. I don't think I'd write here at all if I was a T or planned to be one. I am gracious that others don't feel this way (it's nice to have you here too).

No, I don't think anyone would come here to look for me either, but it's easier than you think to find out someone's identity when you are not even looking. All I have to do is mention something like my "father died last night" and someone, a co-worker perhaps, might think-oh, my coworker's father died last night. They would only have to read 3 or 4 of my posts (maybe) to figure out it's me. It could be as simple as "I just returned from vacation last night and finally get to see my T"...

Also, in addition to the sensitive nature of our conversations, there's still too much mental health stigma to be open. I think it's ok after you've become famous, ie, Marsha Linehan...you're already accomplished and have less to lose. People tend to admire you at that point and talk about how courageous you are. Unsuccessful, maybe that's the case too, but I just don't see it. There is a lot of stigma in the MH field itself, and especially in the health care field, unfortunately.

I also try to be discreet with quoting others' words. If you are responding to one point or question made by the OP, there's no need to quote their entire thread in the response. I'll just quote the sentence or phrase. Not that there's anything wrong with quoting the whole post, it's just I'm more sensitive to protecting others' privacy too.

Aside from that, I am most worried of having a hypomanic or dissociative episode and saying way too much, not really being in control when it happens. Because of that, I write much less here than I want to.

[brillskep]

I read some guideline type post which stated this can happen. But as long as you're not using your real name or something recognizable, I wouldn't worry so much.

Originally Posted by archipelago

I read another post about someone googling their own name here and it coming up. I tried my screen name with just the abbreviation "psych" and all of my posts were right at the top. I had no idea. It's giving me pause.

And here of all places where we are sharing details of our therapy sessions and relationships to our therapists…I don't know. It makes me self-conscious.

I still want to post what I want but I wonder if I should edit myself more.

Did you all realize that these posts are just "out there"?

Originally Posted by healed84

Everything that we all post on the internet is "out there."

It's much different here due to the sensitive nature of our conversations than talking about a social event, or belonging to a pet or travel online community, for example. I've said stuff here that only my T and I know.

[archipelago]

Right it is the sensitive nature of the material, especially here where lots people post very emotionally raw stuff. I have also posted things that only happen in session. It feels different now but I can't explain it very well. I just had good intentions, to get and give support. But it does feel funny now.

[Lauliza]

That freaks me out a little. I looked at my twitter account and my posts are there. I must have connected ths account to twitter but I have no idea how! I never even use twitter, I use it to see what my kids are up to. I should have been more creative in choosing a screen name but honestly didn't think you'd find these posts. I'm not a t yet but when I am I would leave professional stuff up, but would keep personal stuff pretty secure.

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[IndestructibleGirl]

Oh - I didn't even know it was not possible to edit posts after 4 hours?! That doesn't seem like a useful thing? Hmmm.

[unaluna]

Dont forget, google "knows" it's you asking, so it gives you all your own stuff first. It wouldnt come up like that for everybody, altho it might for other pc users.

[archipelago]

amee200 just so you know there was a post with someone asking that a certain number of posts be suppressed and DocJohn said it was not possible. I think you have to yank your whole time here if that is even possible but I'm not sure.

Anyway, I'm not going to worry about it. It just caught me by surprise and made me wonder.