Next Page Counseling, PLLC (hereafter referred to as “NPC”) is committed to maintaining your privacy and protecting your personal information. I work to protect your personal information and maintain your privacy through your use of my website. This Privacy Policy (the “Policy”) applies to my website available at: https://www.nextpagecounseling.com and any other website or mobile application to which this Policy is attached (collectively the “Sites”). This Policy does not apply to your interaction with NPC offline. BY USING THE SITES YOU CONSENT TO THE TERMS OF THIS POLICY AND TO NPC’S COLLECTION AND PROCESSING OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES STATED BELOW. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THIS POLICY YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO USE THE SITES.Privacy Policy

Effective date: [08/22/2026]

Next Page Counseling ("Next Page Counseling," "I," "me," or "my") respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how I collect, use, disclose, retain, and protect information collected through my website, nextpagecounseling.com, and through forms and other services linked to or embedded on the website.

This Privacy Policy concerns my website and online information practices. It does not replace any separate notices or agreements that may apply to psychotherapy services or clinical records.

1. Information I Collect

The information I collect depends on how you interact with my website and services.

Information you voluntarily submit through Google Forms

I use Google Forms connected to my professional Google Workspace account (configured for HIPAA-compliance) for several purposes. These forms may include:

• General inquiries and contact requests

• Psychotherapy waitlist requests

• Reduced-fee applications for psychotherapy

• D&D group applications

• Reduced-fee applications for D&D groups

• Professional feedback

Depending on the form, information you choose to provide may include your name or preferred name, pronouns, state of residence, contact information, insurance information, financial and household information, therapy-related information, reasons for seeking services, D&D scheduling preferences, professional feedback, and other information you choose to include in open-ended responses.  The forms do not automatically collect your email address or require you to sign into a Google account, though you may optionally enter your email address if you choose.

Some information submitted through certain forms may constitute health information or other sensitive personal information. Information submitted through these forms is stored in Google Sheets within my professional Google Workspace account, which is configured to support HIPAA-compliance. 

Please keep in mind that all questions are voluntary; even “required” questions can be circumvented by entering “no” or “FU” in the free text field.  If you’d rather not use one of my forms, or if you’d rather answer certain questions face-to-face, they can wait until we next meet (e.g. your free consultation or your next appointment).

Contact information and communications

If you provide a telephone number or email address, I may use it to respond to your inquiry or communicate with you as you request.  If you enter your email or phone number incorrectly (it happens far more often than one might think!) whatever confirmation message or mailing list request you submitted may be sent to the wrong individual.  Please enter your contact details with care.

When you choose ordinary email or text messaging as a method of communication, those communication methods may not provide the same privacy protections as secure healthcare communication systems. My forms notify you of this when requesting contact information, and you choose to use those methods at your own privacy risk. HIPAA-secure communication options are available to all users via Spruce, the client portal, and/or the secure contact form on my website.

Mailing-list information

I currently use EmailOctopus for selected non-clinical mailing lists.  These include announcements and marketing related to D&D opportunities for therapists, including opportunities to learn or practice D&D, as well as announcements and marketing for NPC’s non-clinical D&D-based peer support groups.  These forms are NOT HIPAA-secure, so please refrain from using them if you have privacy concerns.

I add people to these marketing lists only when they actively subscribe through the signup form or specifically request to be added. I do not add people to the list merely because they contacted me, participated in another service, or provided their email address for another purpose.

The signup forms use Google's reCAPTCHA technology for bot protection. Google may process information in connection with reCAPTCHA according to Google's applicable privacy practices. EmailOctopus may process subscriber information and information about interactions with marketing emails, such as opens and clicks. I may use this information to manage and evaluate my email communications.

You can unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time using the unsubscribe mechanism provided in the emails. EmailOctopus may retain unsubscribed contacts in a suppressed/unsubscribed state to help prevent accidental re-subscription.

Automatically collected website information

Like most websites, my website may automatically receive certain technical information when you visit, such as information about your device, browser, approximate geographic information, pages visited, and interactions with the website. I use Squarespace to host and operate my website and Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand how visitors use the site. In general, I have set my site to collect data in a very privacy-conscious manner, and using aggregated information wherever feasible.

2. Cookies and Google Analytics

My website uses cookies and similar technologies. Some cookies are necessary for the website to function, while others are used for analytics or other non-essential purposes. Where required, my website's cookie-consent mechanism allows visitors to make choices about non-essential cookies.

I use Google Analytics 4 to understand general patterns of website use, such as which pages are visited, how visitors interact with the website, whether visitors scroll through pages, whether visitors click links leading to other websites, and general device and geographic patterns. I have configured Google Analytics to limit unnecessary data collection and advertising-related use. In particular:

• Google Signals is disabled.

• Ads personalization is disabled for all regions.

• I do not intentionally configure Google Analytics to collect User-ID information.

• I do not intentionally configure Google Analytics to collect user-provided information.

• Form-interaction measurement is disabled in Google Analytics.

• User and event-level Google Analytics data is configured for a two-month retention period.

• User-level retention is not reset by new activity.

Google Analytics' standard aggregated reporting may retain information beyond the two-month user/event-level retention period; the two-month setting applies to the more detailed user- and event-level data used for certain analyses.

I do not use Google Analytics to intentionally collect names, email addresses, diagnoses, therapy information, or other information that identifies you personally. Please do not enter sensitive or confidential information into URLs, search fields, or other website elements that are not specifically designed to collect it.

3. How I Use Information

Depending on what service(s) you have expressed interest in, I may use information you provide to:

• Respond to inquiries and requests

• Determine whether psychotherapy or another service may be appropriate for you

• Manage psychotherapy waitlists

• Evaluate reduced-fee requests

• Organize and schedule D&D groups

• Evaluate reduced-fee requests for D&D groups

• Communicate with you about services you have requested information on

• Review professional feedback to improve my professional services

• Send D&D-related announcements and marketing when you have specifically requested to receive them

• Understand how visitors use and navigate my website

• Improve my website, services, and communications

• Maintain the security and functionality of my website and services

• Comply with legal, professional, accounting, security, and recordkeeping obligations

I do not sell your personal information.

4. Sensitive and Health Information

Some forms associated with psychotherapy may collect information that is sensitive or may constitute protected health information (PHI).

I use my professional Google Workspace environment for these forms and have accepted Google's HIPAA Business Associate Agreement for my Workspace account. I configure and use that environment for the handling of information subject to my professional and legal obligations (e.g. information relevant to psychotherapy services). I also voluntarily use this environment to store information that does not require HIPAA protections, but which may nevertheless be sensitive health-related information (e.g. applications for support groups).

Information relating to psychotherapy services is also subject to separate professional, ethical, confidentiality, and legal requirements that apply to clinical records. This website Privacy Policy should not be interpreted as replacing any separate Notice of Privacy Practices or other notice that applies to psychotherapy services.

5. How Information Is Shared

I may use third-party service providers to operate my website, process information you submit, provide analytics, or deliver communications. These may include:

• Google Workspace / Google Forms / Google Sheets, for forms and information submitted through them

• Google Analytics, for website analytics

• Squarespace, for website hosting and related website functionality

• EmailOctopus, for the D&D-related mailing lists and email communications

• Google reCAPTCHA, for protection of the EmailOctopus signup forms against automated submissions (e.g. bots)

I may also disclose information when reasonably necessary to comply with applicable law, respond to lawful requests, protect the rights or safety of myself or others, prevent fraud or abuse, or fulfill professional, legal, or security obligations. Information may also be disclosed when necessary to provide a service you have requested or with your authorization.

6. Data Retention

I do not use a single fixed retention period for all information. Generally, I retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, and for additional periods when reasonably necessary for legitimate business, professional, legal, accounting, security, or recordkeeping purposes.

When information is no longer reasonably needed for those purposes, I may delete or securely dispose of it. Clinical and other professional records may be retained for longer periods when required or permitted by applicable law, professional standards, insurance requirements, or other recordkeeping obligations.

I may retain mailing-list information for as long as reasonably necessary to administer the mailing list and honor subscription and unsubscribe preferences. In particular, an email address may remain in an unsubscribed or suppressed state so that I do not accidentally send marketing to someone who has opted out.

Google Analytics has its own configured retention period for detailed user- and event-level data, as described above.

7. Your Choices and Privacy Requests

You may contact me at nora (at) nextpagecounseling.com if you have questions about this Privacy Policy or want to request access to, correction of, or deletion of information you have submitted through my website.

I will generally respond to and honor reasonable requests promptly. However, I may need to retain information when required or permitted by law or when reasonably necessary for professional, clinical, legal, security, accounting, recordkeeping, or other legitimate purposes.

For example, deleting information from a website inquiry or form does not necessarily mean that corresponding information contained in a clinical record can or should be deleted. Clinical records may be subject to separate legal and professional retention requirements.

You may unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time using the unsubscribe mechanism included in the email. You may also make choices about non-essential cookies through the website's cookie-consent controls.

8. Security

I take reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures to protect information against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction.

No method of transmitting or storing information electronically can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Accordingly, I cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Adults and International Visitors

My website and psychotherapy services are intended for adults. My psychotherapy services are offered to people located in Texas, Illinois, and Florida, per my current clinical licenses and registrations. My non-clinical D&D support groups are offered only to people located in the United States. I do not accept psychotherapy clients or D&D support-group members who are located outside the United States, regardless of formal residency.

My D&D practice/learning opportunities for therapists may be available to participants outside the United States. If you participate in such an international activity, information you provide may therefore be processed in connection with that activity.

10. Third-Party Websites and Services

My website may contain links to websites or services operated by third parties. This Privacy Policy does not govern the privacy practices of those third parties. You should review the privacy policies of third-party websites and services before providing them with personal information.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

I may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in my website, services, technology, legal requirements, or privacy practices. When I make changes, I will update the effective date shown at the beginning of this policy. I encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically.

12. Contact

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, my privacy practices, or information you have submitted through my website, please contact:

Nora Mickowski
Next Page Counseling
Nora [at] nextpagecounseling.com

Effective date: 08/22/26