I’ve always been a list maker. I attribute much of my professional success and personal happiness to jotting down to-dos. Psychologists term this technique “compartmentalization,” and anytime you feel overwhelmed by life’s responsibilities is an excellent time to try it.

Psychologists define compartmentalization as a defense mechanism to avoid the anxiety that arises from the clash of contradictory values or emotions. While that may sound like a bad thing at first glance, it’s how our brains handle conflicting internal standpoints. For example, a manager can consider herself a relaxed mother or partner at home but a demanding boss at work. These two self-images can coincide because the manager compartmentalizes her life. 

As 2019 comes to a close, here are some of the top Off Label Pet and Veterinary Trends and Topics we’ll be talking about in 2020. So grab a pint of kale, snuggle up with your 10 kilogram canine and a bowl of oats, have your banker on speed dial and conference in your virtual vet. It’s time for takeoff! Plant-based pet foods, grain-free dog food blowback and the DCM (dilated cardiomyopathy) controversy, veterinary practice consolidation and corporatization, super-combo parasiticides, veterinary teletriage and telemedicine, and more!

What Physicians Don't Understand about Obesity, Canine Cancer Liquid Biopsy, Intestinal Organoids