Hard Pushed

A midwife memoir for today: HUTCHINSON'S LEAD NON-FICTION DEBUT FOR 2019

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

You haven't slept for twenty hours, haven't eaten for ten, and you're in charge of twenty heavily pregnant women at midnight. Welcome to the life of a midwife.

Life on the NHS front line is tougher than you could imagine. Marathon shifts, endless birth complications, staffing shortages, pushy families, panicking mothers – and that's a quiet Thursday afternoon.

But the strength and camaraderie of the women working under such intense pressure is a beautiful thing. Together, they must withstand one of the world's most difficult job, one that produces moments of pure, absolute joy and –terrible, heart-wrenching grief.

Through the experienced eyes of Leah Hazard, we meet women from all walks of life: the scared fifteen-year-old whose baby could be months premature, the same-sex couple whose child will be a miracle of modern medicine, the woman giving birth in a room drenched in essential oils and love, and the mother-to-be whose tale of exploitation and endurance has carried her thousands of miles to Leah’s ward.

Moving, compassionate and intensely candid, Hard Pushed is a love letter to new mothers and to Leah’s fellow midwives – there for us at some of the most challenging, empowering and defining moments of our lives.

About the Author

Leah Hazard is a serving NHS midwife in Scotland. Having studied at Harvard, she left a career in television to pursue her lifelong interest in women’s health after the birth of her first daughter in 2003. She soon began working as a doula, supporting women in pregnancy and attending numerous births in homes and hospitals across the country. The birth of Leah’s second daughter in 2006 prompted Leah to make the leap into midwifery. Since qualifying, she has worked in a variety of clinical areas within the NHS maternity services, including antenatal clinics, triage units and labour wards.