How to Summarize Your Drug History in Your Signature

[Altostrata]

Putting a SHORT version of your recent history of reducing or discontinuing drugs in your signature helps people understand your context when they read your posts.

 

Your signature appears under all your posts. To add or edit your signature, click on Account Settings in the menu that drops down from your name in the upper right of every page.

 

This link should go directly to your own signature. Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature

 

Remember to Save after entering the text in the box:

 

The staff needs this information to answer your questions. In your signature, we need to see

- Exactly what drugs you're taking now (not just psychiatric drugs), with dosages and when you started each drug

- What you were taking before, with dosages and start and stop dates

 

As the signature is limited to 12 lines, we expect you to condense your drug history. The last few years usually will do.

 

FOR READABILITY, SHORT LINES ARE BEST.

• A list is easier to understand than one or multiple paragraphs
• Include ALL drugs, doses, and dates (starting and stopping)
• Any drugs prior to 24 months ago can just be listed with start and stop years
• Use actual dates or approximate dates (e.g. mid-June 2018) rather than relative time frames (e.g. 3 months ago)
• Spell out months (e.g. "January" or "Jan" as 9/1/2016 can be interpreted as 9 Jan 2016 or 1 Sept 2016)
• Please leave out symptoms and diagnoses

 

Example:

2001–2002 paroxetine 
2003  citalopram 
2004  paroxetine
2008  paroxetine slow taper down to 2016 Aug off paroxetine
2016  citalopram May 20mg  Oct slow taper down
2018  citalopram 13 Feb 4.6mg 15 Mar 4.4mg 29 Apr 4.2mg

 

If you edit your signature, the new one replaces any prior signature. It will appear in your signature under all your posts, even your old posts. If you want to save the information in the old signature, copy it and save it in a file on your computer or in a post in your Introductions topic.

 

(As of 12/31/13: Signatures are limited to 12 lines of text.)

How to add or edit your signature

1. Click on this link to open the correct page in User Settings:
   Create Your Signature in "Account Settings". 
   2017-June 12 update: link works on desktop, tablet and mobile phone versions
    
2. Enter your signature in the space provided.
3. When you are done, Click on the big black Save button at the bottom.
    

If the link isn't working, follow these steps:

1. Click on the small downward arrow next to your name in the top right corner of any page.
2. Select Account Settings from the list.
3. On the left of the Account Settings page, click on the Signature tab. You will be able to add or edit your signature.
4. Click on the big black Save button at the bottom when you are done.

 

FOR READABILITY, SHORT LINES ARE BEST.

 

(The history, or profile information, you entered when you registered can be read only by you and the administration team. If you wish, you can copy it to your public signature.)

 

If you are new, start a topic for yourself in the Introductions forum.

Link to Start a New Topic in the Introductions forum.

Link to Introductions Forum.

 

Thank you.

Edited November 18, 2022 by getofflex
updated

[Barbarannamated]

Additional suggestion: Put a link to your Introductions topic in your signature, too!

Thanks, Bar, for this suggestion.

 

I believe Shanti deserves the credit.

Thanks for posting this. I didn't know how to get a message out to everyone.

[Altostrata]

As of today: Signatures are limited to 12 lines of text.

 

It seems the signature length limit got lost in last spring's site upgrade. Those very long signatures are difficult to read.

 

If you edit your signature now, you will find you cannot go beyond 12 lines. If your signature was longer, you will have to delete some of it.

 

In terms of withdrawal, your most RECENT drug and tapering history is what's most important in your signature.

[Rhiannon]

Just a note about the importance of filling in your sig line:  As a moderator, I don't have time to read through everyone's thread from the start to find out their history and what's going on with their meds. So if I come to a thread that doesn't have a filled in sig line and is more than a week or two old, I will just click out and move on to another thread. I'm pretty sure other people do the same thing.

 

So if you don't fill in your sig line you may be missing out on some help and support.

[Altostrata]

The 12-line limit applies to new signatures and signatures that are being revised.

 

Old signatures will not be affected by the limit until they are edited.

[SkyBlue]

It seems some people are not adhering to this and have signatures that are a page in length, even though they've been recently edited. It just makes threads longer to read (and more data on the site).

[Altostrata]

Yes, folks, please just give the bare bones of your last couple of years of drug use. Out of consideration for the rest of us, keep your signature short.

 

You can recount your entire history in a post in your Introductions topic.

 

Thanks.

[JLex1981]

How do you see people’s signatures? Sometimes I see them and sometimes not. 

 

Thanks!

[manymoretodays]

Hi JLex,

On some devices you can't see signatures.  On my desktop PC for example.......I can always see signatures.

However on my Android smarter than me phone(circa 2013) I cannot see them at all. 

 

I can get to Account Settings on my droid but it would be awkward for me to update my signature that way.  I'm not much of a dexter texter.  The link does work on most devices for writing a 12 line signature.  Unfortunately not for viewing on all devices.

 

So.......it may be a problem if you are switching devices.  The viewing of signatures as well as the updating of your own.  This may apply to other non PC devices as well.

 

To update a signature on a PC go to the top right corner of your screen and click on your user name.

>Click on Account Settings

>Click signature and from there you can update

 

No promises.......yet I will update my own rather bulky signature soon.

 

I hope that helps somewhat and Welcome aboard!

 

manymoretodays

 

 

 

 

Edited April 21, 2018 by manymoretodays
elaboration

[JLex1981]

Thanks ManyMore !!!

[Altostrata]

Regarding signatures on mobile devices, software support says
 

Quote

 

This is not something in which is currently possible, without customisation to the product. It would also not actually be recommended, as signatures can tend to be quite large in size and deter mobile users.

 

 

[arwilliams]

On mobile signatures do not display which is fine.  Is there a way to link to your specific signature maybe so people can at least view it on mobile?  Signatures seem to be more updated then about anything else especially considering posts are not editable(to my knowledge).

[Altostrata]

True, adding a signature is difficult to do on mobile. You could enter your signature info in a post in your Introductions topic, and on mobile, put a link to that post.

 

Capture the link to a post by clicking on the tiny "share" icon in the top right of any post.

[arwilliams]

Is there a way to force the desktop site on Safari or Chrome that will work for this site?  I have attempted such and well it doesn't seem to work on iOS.

 

edit: So I have full site desktop browsers in the App Store.  What I have is called "Full Browser."  But despite displaying the full site signatures are still hidden for some reason.

[Altostrata]

The site software for mobile does not work for creating signatures. This is a known issue.

[arwilliams]

So if anyone would like to see signatures on mobile you simply need to run this javascript bookmarklet on the page your are on.

 javascript:jQuery("div[data-role='memberSignature']").attr("style","display:block !important")

 

[Altostrata]

Thanks, ar. Please check here to respond to any questions about the javascript bookmarklet.

[mammaP]

Bump to top. 

[gardenlady]

On 5/29/2018 at 8:06 PM, arwilliams said:

So if anyone would like to see signatures on mobile you simply need to run this javascript bookmarklet on the page your are on.

 javascript:jQuery("div[data-role='memberSignature']").attr("style","display:block !important")

 

How do I run this bookmark when I am on a specific page? Can someone provide instructions on how to use it?

[manymoretodays]

I'll try a @ notification.  You could also try a PM to arwilliams.  I could not attempt to explain that one.  I think ar still checks in here.

@arwilliams

Edited November 19, 2018 by manymoretodays

[arwilliams]

@gardenlady Try this for iOS Safari(which is my primary phone). 

https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/74195/add-bookmarklet-to-mobile-safari

 

Samsung Internet on Android is the exact same technique can work but you use that.

Chrome on Android which is typically the default browser doesn't support bookmarklets.

 

 Safari allows you to sync to your phone if you have an iPhone and Macbook Pro.

 

Does your phone sync to anything?  Because if so there is a slightly easier technique but it will require me setting up a website/webpage.

 

Here is a picture of the finished production on my iPhone.  I use this feature all the time.

 

[Lanysavy]

Hi admin

why i can’t comment on tapering topics ?! I wanted comment on tips for tapering off Risperidone but I can’t . Sorry if this comment was in a wrong place !!! Can you send me an email ? 

[Altostrata]

You need to be logged in to post in Tapering topics. If you have questions about your own particular situation, please put them in your Introductions topic instead.

[mooki24]

On 11/20/2018 at 9:57 AM, manymoretodays said:

I'll try a @ notification.  You could also try a PM to arwilliams.  I could not attempt to explain that one.  I think ar still checks in here.

@arwilliams

@manymoretodays how did you get your signature to fit? Struggling to get mine to fit!

[arwilliams]

It appears the site has been modified and this issue has been resolved. That at least appears to be the case on my now *android phone. 

[Melany]

Where do I activate it please? I deactivated it by mistake.

[ChessieCat]

@Melany

 

Your drug signature is visible.  This link goes directly to your signature.  After editing it you need to click on Save which is under the edit box.

 

Suggestion:  You might keep a copy of your current signature before editing just in case you make a mistake or something goes wrong.

 

Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature

[Melany]

 

Done,  was a button on desktop with view signatures. A button that wasn t there on mobile . Thanks .

Can you now help me  Chessiecat? Anytime you have the time please take a look at my post please.

[Shep]

We have locked this topic to future posts. 

 

Please ask questions about how to add a signature in your own introduction / update thread. If you're having technical problems accessing or using the signature feature, please let us know here in the Technical support and bug reports.

 

Thank you.