My last role as a management consultant in a big firm, where i thought being able to think was a criteria for the role, ended with me pretty much being an overpriced typist, sitting in meetings, going over the same questions with different people in the client organisation, only to have the conclusions ignored. It did my head in. I'm a critical thinker, most of the time, which you'd think would be an asset. Apparently thinking critically of overpaid, incompetent project managers who insist on all team members being in 2 hour meetings, when only the relevant supervisor needed to be so the rest of us could get some real work done (yano, what the client is paying for), was not within my purview. Turns out I wasn't a critical thinker after all, I just had an attitude problem. I should have realised that before I spent $40K on an MBA. I guess I'm still slightly bitter about the experience. Whenever I see reports about government agencies spending millions on consulting fees for huge projects that never run on time or on budget and often dont work, I usually laugh hysterically. I've been on the inside. Only a couple of people are actually paid to think. The rest are there to fill in timesheets and charge expenses.

As for hospital thinking. When birthing DS2, there was a fair bit of "discussion" about whether or not I could labour in the bath. Apparently this tertiary hospital did not have a policy for stillbirth labour in the bath, so they were going to let me struggle on in grief and pain. I could have had all the drugs in the world for the asking, but trying to have a normal as possible labour was difficult. One day, when I have the energy, I'll write to someone about that. At least I had an IM who fought for me and I was unaware of the drama whilst it was happening. If the midwives had been allowed to think for themselves, they'd have realised there was no harm and to just let it happen. Other women going through the same pain who dont have their own IM likely wont be given the option.