This episode kicks off a series where we explore the three major identity transformations most animal care workers experience: entering the field for the first time, enduring defining moments that shatter our understanding of the work, and exiting when we feel staying means losing ourselves.Drawing on research in moral injury, organizational psychology, and anthropology, Dr. Jamie McNally guides listeners through the concept of "liminal space", the uncomfortable in-between where we're no longer who we were but not yet who we're becoming. These transitions are psychologically dangerous when unsupported, which is why turnover in animal care remains devastatingly high.If you're questioning your place in animal care right now, if you're standing at a crossroads in animal care unsure whether to step in, stay, or walk away, know that feeling has a name: liminal space. And it's where every transformative journey begins. And if you are in a liminal space, this series is for you.

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