Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay

191 reviews

lotteee11's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

I think the tone was meant to be lighthearted, but it came across as arrogant, especially on the first 30 or so pages. I also would have preferred the book to be about any specialisation but obstretics and gynaecology, because I simply cannot stand men talking disrespectfully about women in labour (not the writer so much as some of his senior colleagues). There was also some pretty horrible advice in there like taking the pill back to back to get rid of your period, instead of using a menstrual cup which also allows you to have sex without any blood involved whilst actually maintaining a healthy period. Yet, the book did give good insight into the failings of medical and nursing degrees, the inefficiency of NHS systems, and the absurd working hours of junior doctors. It was also well-written and kept me hooked right from the start. Funny, though, is not a word I would use to describe this memoir.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Miscarriage, Blood, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Pregnancy

jemima_reads15's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative fast-paced

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Drug use, Infertility, Miscarriage, Blood, Excrement, Antisemitism, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Fatphobia

kain47's review against another edition

emotional funny informative fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Child death and Abortion

mimir's review

challenging emotional funny informative fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Miscarriage, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy

lauraginger's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts

scarletkeiller's review

emotional funny informative sad fast-paced

4.75

As close to five stars as it could get without hitting the mark. This was an exceptional read! Kay’s ability to write about such stressful, life-altering experiences with lightheartedness and wit is unbelievable. Following his journey through medicine and the increasing pressures of the responsibility of his job, I found myself very endeared to him.

He is fundamentally very honest about his thoughts and actions, even when they don’t paint him in the best light, so by the end, when you are reading a recollection of probably the greatest trauma of his life, it is devastating to say the least. The section ‘Aftermath’ had me in fits of tears, and for hours after finishing the book I was still reflecting on what I had read, and how it made me feel, and how special this was as an experience. The only reason I haven’t rated it five stars is that, despite how much I loved the way this was structured and paced, I felt that the ‘bonus entries’ at the end of the book softened the emotional impact of the climax, and took away the harshness of the blow it had dealt. Which sounds like an odd thing to complain about, but up until the final diary entry, despite being able to see the cracks forming in his mental health and his ability to cope with the stress of the job, you can see he still loves being in obs and gynae and he finds value and humour in the job regardless of the monumental toll it takes on his personal life and health. So when he is suddenly thrown into a situation so stressful and so traumatic that it eventually leads to his leaving medicine altogether, this is a huge shock and, naturally, I wanted to sit with the feelings it brought up for a while and really reflect on what I had read. It was clearly a huge deal for him to share this experience, and it was a shame that the extra bits at the end took away from its impact.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

rebleejen's review against another edition

funny informative fast-paced

4.5

Interesting and funny (very funny, in fact--I LOLed), but also a bit depressing. I can't help thinking there's got to be a better way to train doctors. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content and Medical trauma

riannamarie's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective fast-paced

4.25

I am a medical student close to beginning my working life in Australia so this book is particularly eye opening for me. I listened to the audiobook of this where Adam narrates so I felt like he was reading me a funny yet gut-churning bedtime story. 

This book is filled with insights from Adam's time in the NHS as a junior doctor where he worked his way up the chain until he became an O and G senior reg. It made me laugh out loud multiple times because of Adam's sarcastic quips about his patient experiences. It also forced me to revise O and G in a fun way (I'll thank him in my graduation speech). At certain points I gasped at the shear grusomeness of some of the stories (and trust me, not a lot shocks me now). The degloving story will be forever burned into my brain.

I approach the next year with excitement and a healthy dose of cautious trepidation after reading this story. In Australia it's not as bad; the working hours and conditions are much better than the NHS from what I have heard. You still hear enough stories that make you slightly wary of what's to come. I just hope stories like this have made a difference for us future doctors.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death

leaflover's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexism, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

hjb_128's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny informative reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Gore, Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Domestic abuse