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<p>This approach has the advantage of using up sick days (which many of us have in abundance) rather than vacation days (which may be in shorter supply). But to do it, you have to pretend to be sick and take the time off without prior notice, which could create problems for your supervisor and colleagues. </p>
<p>I am taking a “vacation” day two weeks from now, for reasons that I vaguely implied were social, when I’m actually getting a mammogram in the morning and having a follow-up visit with a doctor about an entirely different matter in the afternoon. I have already requested the day off, and the request has been approved. So nobody’s going to schedule me into a meeting or training session or other event that day. But if I pretended to be sick that day, it could mess up a lot of plans.</p>
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<p>Pediatricians, too. I remember one young, childless pediatrician who told me that “practically all children are fully toilet-trained by age two and a half.” She was pregnant with her first child at the time. I had to struggle not to laugh.</p>