u/SibylFelis

So the tl;dr is that I moved to the UK in January for work. My husband and son were meant to join me next month. Things were going fine until April, when my best friend, and the only person I knew in the UK before moving here, got sick. She died at the beginning of June, and a lot of it seems to be because the NHS moved so fucking slowly. She was sick for two months before they found a mass, and then spent another month in and out of the hospital as they botched a biopsy and had to do another. They never even started treating the cancer or had a formal diagnosis before she died. I am bereft, alone, and the stress has caused my own health issue (afib) to flare back up after being basically dormant for 2.5 years. The NHS is being a PITA to deal with about it.

I have serious doubts about staying, but also sunk my pension in the US into paying for this move. It wasn't a huge amount, but it means I'll be starting from scratch at 39 years old if I go back. And I know if I regret going back to the US, I'll never be able to afford to do this again.

I don't know if I'm looking for advice or someone with a similar experience, I'm just so lost, and the one person that I would have talked to about it is gone. I'm so goddamned lonely and I don't think the handful of friends I've made since moving can get it.

I know the six month mark is also when the "new" starts to wear off, and I am trying not to let my current state of mind (which is NOT GOOD) make me act rashly, but...the doubts are there. And paying for two more visas, moving two cats, and shipping more things over when I have these doubts feels so risky.

Hi there,

This year, Canada changed their laws to allow canadian citizenship by descent to go further back than just grandparents. My great-grandfather was born in Quebec, which means my grandmother (deceased), mother, myself, and my son should all be able to claim Canadian citizenship. I've started the process to get the necessary documents to apply, but I am an American that is currently living in the UK on a skilled worker visa.

Will getting a canadian passport before my next renewal complicate things, or will I simply add the Canadian passport (assuming it all goes to plan) to my next visa application?

Thanks!

What are some stupid things you miss that were totally unexpected?

My newest one is orange pill bottles. Why is everything in these stupid pill packs? Will be saving pill bottles from my remaining American prescriptions and just dumping everything into them when I get refills.

Had an unexpected and slightly traumatic encounter with NHS ambulance service this weekend and the paramedic wanted to see my prescription pill bottles because he thought they were cool, lol, and had only ever seen them on TV.

Relocated in January, drove up to Scotland this weekend with a friend. Was absolutely delighted on the drive home to see this old Tennessee State Police cruiser in Oxfordshire. Why is it here? Not a clue. Driver seated on the left and everything.

If you've ever had to roadtrip through Tennessee on a holiday weekend, you know the TSP are sitting there along the whooooooooooole of I-40, so somehow it seemed quite appropriate to pass one here, lol.

https://preview.redd.it/4oy1ecto8b3h1.jpg?width=1536&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=09d2d074d3166686ceb8f8cf319a3a307e2e69aa