But, even with just reading the first sentence of Adam Kay's book, I was hooked - gone was the book-hating attitude (which you can blame A-Level English Literature for). For me, a lot of the terminology in 'This is Going to Hurt' (which I will now shorten to TIGTH) was like reading in a foreign language or morse code, however, Kay made it super easy to understand with his basic explanations and a little Asterix* every time there was a word like episiotomy or marsupialization.
What became immediately apparent to me was that this book was in equal parts heartbreaking as it was humorous. Kay kept the diary entries light-hearted and comical, yet there is an underlying tone of defeat, which is revealed in section ten. Section ten had me in tears. Kay's explanation of why he quit the NHS was raw and I empathised with the pain he must have felt to leave a career, that once meant everything to him. The love that Kay feels towards the NHS will always be there, as he reiterates, but he could not continue working in an environment which was damaging him physically, mentally and emotionally. And honestly I applaud those who work day in, day out, in our crumbling NHS.
By reading diary entries from over a span of five years, the reader gets to grasp life in the obstetrics and gynaecology ward. Some of the stories Kay effortlessly tells had me howling with laughter, so much so that I even got told to shut up on the train. A particular favourite of mine has to be the story of a woman who shoved a kinder-egg containing an engagement ring into her privates (as if that would be romantic anyway) and, you can see where this is going... yes, it got stuck. You'll be pleased to know that story is just one among many, and I'm sure that Kay has many more that were unable to be published.
All things considered, if I had to give TIGTH a score out a five, I would give it a 4.5/5 (my five is saved for a book I would re-read over and over again). Personally, the book was super informative and it gave me a perspective of the NHS that I would struggle to find elsewhere. The diary entries, although separate and often a span of a few days would be missing in the middle, were coherent, when it could have easily been confusing.
The ending summed up how Kay felt towards junior-doctor attacking politicians and in my opinion, more needs to be done to help and support NHS staff because they make the impossible, seem possible, and they work f**king hard.
Oh, and happy 2020!