Privacy policy

This page explains, in plain language, how Shrinktionary handles information when you visit the site. We've kept it short and honest.

The short version

Shrinktionary is a place to read. You don't need an account, we don't sell personal data, and we don't run advertising anywhere on the site. We do use Google Analytics to understand which entries people find useful, but only if you say yes. If you decline, or if you simply ignore the banner, Google Analytics never loads and nothing is sent to Google.

A note on health information

Shrinktionary is an educational publisher, not a healthcare provider. We aren't a clinic, and we aren't a HIPAA-covered entity. Reading the site doesn't create a clinician-patient relationship. We don't ask for, want, or knowingly collect personal health information about you, such as your diagnoses, symptoms, or treatment. Please don't send us that kind of detail. If you email us, share only what you'd be comfortable putting in an ordinary email.

We take this seriously in one specific way. The pages you read here can reveal something private about what you're going through. That's exactly why analytics is off by default and why we ask before turning it on, instead of assuming.

Analytics, and your choice about it

We use Google Analytics 4 to see which entries get read, how people find the site, and whether the links between our pages are useful. It's how we decide what to write next and what to fix. It's optional, and the site works identically whether you allow it or not.

Nothing loads until you choose. If you decline, we don't load Google Analytics at all, so your browser never contacts Google and no analytics cookies are set. This isn't a "cookies denied but still measuring" setup. Declining means the tag isn't there.

If you allow it, Google Analytics collects the pages you view on this site, roughly where in the world you are (a city or region worked out from your IP address, which Google doesn't store), your device and browser type, and how you arrived, such as from a search engine or a link. It also records when someone follows a link from here to another site in The Shrink Network, so we can tell whether those handoffs are helping.

We've configured Google Analytics with advertising features and ad personalization switched off. We don't use it to build advertising audiences, we don't run ads, and we don't sell this data. Google processes it on our behalf, on their servers, which are in the United States and elsewhere, under Google's own terms. We keep the data for two months, which is the shortest retention Google Analytics allows.

You can change your mind at any time. Manage your cookie choices. If you switch from yes to no, we delete the analytics cookies from your browser. You can also install Google's own opt-out add-on, which blocks Google Analytics on every site you visit.

Cookies

Shrinktionary sets as few cookies as it can. Here's the complete list.

• Your analytics choice. When you accept or decline the banner, we save that answer in your browser's local storage so we don't ask again on every page. It's stored on your device and never sent to us.
• Google Analytics, only if you accept. These are the cookies named _ga and _ga_2HB7NZWE3R. They give your browser a random identifier so Google Analytics can tell a returning visit from a new one. They last up to two years unless you clear them. If you decline, they're never set.

That's the whole list. We don't use cookies for advertising, and we don't use them to follow you around other websites. Every browser also lets you block or delete cookies yourself, and Shrinktionary will still work normally if you do.

Search

Search on this site runs entirely in your browser. When you type a word into the search box, the query stays on your device. It isn't sent to us or to anyone else.

What we don't collect

We don't have accounts, logins, or profiles. We don't run a newsletter sign-up or ask you for an email address to read anything. We don't use tracking pixels from social networks or advertising companies, we don't sell or rent data to anyone, and we don't try to identify you personally. If you accept analytics, Google receives what's described above and nothing more.

When you email us

If you write to us, we'll have your email address and whatever you put in the message, and we'll keep it only as long as it takes to answer you and to keep a record of corrections. We use it to reply, and for nothing else.

Server logs

Like nearly every website, our host keeps basic server logs for security and reliability. These typically include the IP address that made a request, the time, the URL requested, and the browser type. They're separate from analytics, they exist whether or not you allow analytics, they aren't used to build a profile of you, and they're kept only as long as those operational purposes require.

Third-party services

Running a website means relying on a few outside services. Ours are web hosting and a content delivery network, and, if you allow it, Google Analytics. These providers handle some technical data as part of doing their job. That's the whole list, and we'll update this page if it ever changes.

Links to other sites

Shrinktionary links out to other sites in The Shrink Network, and to outside sources like the National Institute of Mental Health. Once you land on another site, that site's privacy policy applies, not this one.

Children

Shrinktionary is written for a general adult audience and isn't directed at children under 13. We don't knowingly collect information from children. If you believe a child has sent us personal information, contact us and we'll delete it.

Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to see, correct, or delete personal information a site holds about you. In our case the practical answer is simple. We hold almost nothing. If you've allowed analytics, you can withdraw that at any time with the manage cookies control, which also deletes the analytics cookies from your browser. If you've emailed us and want that email deleted, ask and we'll delete it.

Changes to this policy

If we change how any of this works, we'll update this page and change the date at the top. If a change is significant, such as adding a new tool that collects something, we'll ask for your consent again rather than assume the old answer still applies.

Contact

Questions about privacy, or a request to delete something, go to our contact page.

Shrinktionary is published by The Shrink Network and medically reviewed by Shariq Refai, MD, MBA, FAPA. It's educational information, not medical advice. If you're in crisis, call or text 988 in the US.