If you were to seek advice on a personal matter, who would you turn to?

Both have pros and cons. You should be able to tell your close friend anything, but also if it is someone you’ll never meet then you may spare yourself potential embarrassment.

I would probably go with the anon, just cos i’m a bit like that.

I would go with anonymous, because by telling a friend you are placing a burden on them. If you tell someone anonymously, and they tell people, who’s to know?

As Ecclesiates states, “There is nothing new under the sun.” Someone, somewhere, has the same problem. Your personal issues are already out there anonymously, but not attached to you. The only thing truly unique to your personal matters is that they are attached to you, and therefore matter to you.

@FishGutsDale Thanks for your answer, and welcome to Fluther!

@PandoraBoxx Good logic there. I would be careful taking advice from the Bible though, even though it won’t tell anyone.

@FireMadeFlesh Thanks for the welcome!

With a friend you run the risk of having information bleed over. For example, if it was a relationship problem they would most likely know the other party involved and they could be a more likely to be influenced by things that don’t relate to the situation. This could be good and bad.

Assuming the output was equal I would go with stranger. If my friend is a doctor and I can go to another doctor that I don’t know I would pick the one I don’t know to examine the rash on my testicles.

@johnpowell LOL!

@FireMadeFlesh, the quote was a question on the “Bible or Shakespeare?” quiz

@johnpowell Great answer!
@PandoraBoxx Thanks, that does change the context of the quote.

@all This is a little too easy – what if there was an unknown probability of a friend of a friend putting things together? Would you take the risk to choose the stranger?

It seems to me like we do this all the time – here. I realize that most of us consider each other friends, but the odds of all of us meeting are (sadly) slim. There are questions on fluther that I would never ask my close friends who I physically see every day, because I feel that it would somehow change our daily reaction. I assume (perhaps incorrectly) that some of us discuss fluther with our non-fluthering families or friends, but because of the relative anonymity offered by the internet, our secrets are safe.

obviously, that doesn’t apply to everyone (as some of you fluther with friends) but for people who have stumbled on the site, it offers us the opportunity to ask understanding, intelligent strangers for the advice which we cannot seek closer to home.

Fluther.

That’s why I go to a psychologist. I pay him to listen and give me advice.

ATM, I have no idea.

Interesting question. I would likely tell my Spouse if anyone. If I cannot tell my spouse, and drinking a couple of glasses of wine does not resolve it in my mind if it is serious enough I will seek confidential professional help.

Or- if it is not a really serious issue but one I need input on I may get an alternate ID on some off- beat but really funky cool Q&A site where intelligent life has been found and ask an opinion on there, hang out long enough to spread the lurve then nuke the account.

Mom no matter what.

I would be able to tell my partner and best friend anything – it couldn’t be worse that the things they have told me about themselves

I would consult the crazy 8 ball.

I don’t have problems that I can’t discuss with anyone. Medical, career, relationships, business, I have several friends and professionals I can call on.

Depends on the subject matter. I have at times turned to anonymous persons for very personal, scary and troubling things in order to not shock people I know irl.