u/YhouZee

I'll be migrating to a new country soon, and the trip will be over 30 hours from doorstep to doorstep. So unfortunately I won't be able to carry my freezer stash of almost 100 x 150 - 200ml bags. There are no donor milk programs where I live, and local mothers would look at you strange if you offered them breast milk.

I still produce more than enough for my 3mo baby daily so I can't feed him from there (plus I don't even have enough time to do that!). I have a separate stash of leftovers which I use for baths.

I'll be awfully sad to waste so much milk, so I was wondering if I could begin thawing them a few at a time, scoop the fat layer, and add to my baby's bottles?

Any other tips welcome for this situation re transporting the milk, alternative uses etc. For context I'm flying Nigeria on Qatar Airways with 2 layovers, plus the hours before and after the flight, and a 3.5 hour train ride at the destination.

So I'm moving to the UK from Nigeria soon. I've lived here all my life, I'm used to Nigerian food, although ​I'm open to trying out basically anything. I'm not one of those Naija food purists who can't go without swallow or soup, but of course I would like to be able to prepare our local dishes in the UK from time to time.

Everyone and their mother is advising me to carry a ton of spices from Nigeria. I understand taking local spices like our pepper soup mix, uda/uziza, etc, and crayfish and some Garri perhaps, but they are also insisting they continental spices like thyme, parsley, rosemary etc are somehow better (stronger) in Nigeria than the UK. That everything is blander over there. I am specifically talking about pure spices, not spice mixes like curry spice, jollof spice etc, which I agree are loaded with salt/MSG and whose Nigerian versions are more intense.

Now I have visited the UK a number of times and even cooked there, I didn't notice any difference. I even buy spices when I travel abroad because many of the spices in Nigerian market are imported or manufactured abroad anyway. I have been arguing with literally everyone I know who moved to the UK.

What do you guys think? Is it really worth carrying packs of oregano and parsley from Nigeria ?

I just applied and gave biometrics for my UK skilled work visa. I am a doctor employed for residency training and I am registered with the GMC.

In the application I was asked if my regulatory body had accepted an English test (Yes - I sat IELTS Academic in Dec 2025 as part of the requirements for licensure)

In the VFS document upload portal, under education, I uploaded the Dec 2025 Academic IELTS Certificate. After submission I learned that IELTS for visa purposes should be IELTS for UKVI, not Academic, and that I should have uploaded my GMC certificate of registration in lieu.

The English evidence was not a part of my personalised checklist, but I worry that my application could be refused for not using the correct IELTS mode. I don't know if UKVI can contact the GMC directly to confirm my details. I did upload my offer letter with the COS tho.

Is this something to be worried about?

FSW Outland.

Our application is in progress (dependant spouse is in comprehensive background check) since 8 months ago. Within that time we had a newborn and have submitted their birth and passport details for addition to the application. This was done 2 months ago but IRCC has not added the child to the application yet nor requested medicals.

We are leaving our country for 8 months soon, and at our destination country, it might be difficult to locate an approved clinic for medicals, should it be requested for the baby. Would it be alright to get one done now even though we have not been asked to?

Also, our (parents) medicals will expire during our trip (in October). Is it okay to also repeat ours now ahead of expiry, just in case?

I've posted on here before but in brief, I'm a Nigerian lady employed in the NHS, moving to the UK in 3 weeks.

For the last ~2 months I've been trying to secure a let with little success. Now I understand that the rental market is tough nowadays and landlords will always prioritise people on ground and are ready to move in soon, that's why I mainly contact agents for houses that show availability from lateJune to July.

I have no credit history in the UK, and my yearly income in Nigeria is a pittance in £, but I do have a sibling in the UK who is settled and owns his home as a guarantor. I also have savings >£18k if that matters. I have employer referees from home, and even my to-be supervisor at the NHS trust has agreed to act as a referee if necessary.

The problem is this. I have contacted A LOT of EAs via zoopla, rightmove, even OpenRent (verified sans credit check), on the market, you name it, I have tried. I always explain my situation upfront. About half the time, I don't get any response beyond the auto reply via email. When I call I often get told I need to attend a viewing in person (not by proxy), or that viewings are full. I have a friend kind enough to attend viewings for me; she has attended 3, after which I sent in applications followed by radio silence. To be fair I have gotten fair enough to pay the holding deposit for 2 houses only to be refunded saying that the application was unsuccessful/another applicant was chosen. I have 2 pending applications still.

My back up plan is to Airbnb after arriving while I continue house hunting and attending viewings in person but I'd really prefer to lock down a rental before the move, and before starting work which will really not afford me much free time for viewing and furnishing

the place.

So my question is basically, how likely am I to even succeed in letting from abroad? Should I just abandon the process till I get in the country? Is there something I'm not doing right perhaps?

Need advice guys on the logistics of transcontinental travel while having a predominantly bottle fed baby. We will be on a total 17h journey (8h flight, 3h layover, 6h flight) when my baby is 3 months old. Then we'd need to take a train to our final destination. So probably close to 24 hours total. Here is our situation:

At birth he latched well, established exclusive nursing for a bit. From about 3 weeks he started having what I think is reflux (I'm honestly not even sure) where he'd wriggle and arch and pop off the breast yet still come back to latch. I introduced bottles which he developed a strong preference for. Now while I nurse before each bottle feed, it never lasts more than a minute or two and he would still take ~90ml from the bottle after briefly nursing. So I'm essentially EPing, hence posting here. I have a ~5L freezer stash and just under a litre in the fridge.

1. Is there any possibility of traveling with the frozen milk? Are there coolers that could possibly keep the milk frozen for over 24 hours (including airport and train transit time to and fro). I'd hate to waste so much milk

2. More importantly, can I board with a day's worth of milk? How do I even keep it cool in the plane? And the bottles, I'd probably need like 8 of them to avoid reusing them? Or can flight attendants allow me access to wash them in their kitchen perhaps? Is it even safe?

3. Has anyone pumped on a flight? I can only afford economy and I have handheld pumps. I don't know if it'll be weird whipping out my breasts to pump, although I'll be sat by the window and my other kid/spouse on the next 2 seats. And then how would I even preserve the pumped milk?

Please any ideas or previous similar experience would be greatly appreciated. Many thanks!

Has anyone here lived/visited there? I need some ground info as I'm about to rent a place there from abroad.

Many thanks

...or their perfume.

I don't know how this never bothered me with my first baby but oh my god it fills me with r a g e to have my baby smelling like other people. And it has been happening a lot, with visitors trooping in and out. Is it just me, or do I tell people to lay off the Dior Sauvage before coming visiting?

With 19 niblings, 2 kids of my own, and having grown up in a large multi-family house I have been around a lot of newborns. And I always associated a distinct smell to them even as a child. As an adult thinking about this, I thought it was baby products. But then I don't live in the region I grew up in anymore and I don't see those products of old anymore. Perhaps then, I though, maybe breast milk? But breastfed, formula fed and even babies fed corn based gruel (as some mothers do in my region) tend to smell similar.

So what exactly is this essence of baby?

NB I am talking about newborns/young infants before they are old enough to start running around, by which time they generally stop smelling specifically babyish and imbibe the general smell of their home, at least to my nose.

This is more of a shower thought, not specific to me and I am NOT asking for medical advice.

​I’m moving to the UK (North Cumbria specifically) from Nigeria soon for a job, and am looking to rent a 2-bed, 2-bath apartment.

I've lived in the tropics my entire life mostly in homes built by my family and accommodation provided by my jobs. So I've never really done this house hunting thing even at home. Navigating the UK rental market will be entirely new to me.

I have an infant and a toddler so obviously safety is my biggest consideration. I'll prefer somewhere close to my intended workplace and childcare options too.

I guess what I'm asking is what are some obvious and not so obvious things to look out for in terms of building structure, utility, hidden costs, winter/weather related issues, etc. I'd rather not have to move in the short term.

Also I know about zoopla and rightmove. What other good resources can I use to view and select a flat?

Thanks in advance!

​

​I’m moving to the UK (North Cumbria specifically) from Nigeria soon for a job, and am looking to rent a 2-bed, 2-bath apartment.

I've lived in the tropics my entire life mostly in homes built by my family and accommodation provided by my jobs. So I've never really done this house hunting thing even at home. Navigating the UK rental market will be entirely new to me.

I have an infant and a toddler so obviously safety is my biggest consideration. I'll prefer somewhere close to my intended workplace and childcare options too.

I guess what I'm asking is what are some obvious and not so obvious things to look out for in terms of building structure, utility, hidden costs, winter/weather related issues, etc. I'd rather not have to move in the short term.

Also I know about zoopla and rightmove. What other good resources can I use to view and select a flat?

Thanks in advance!

​

​I’m moving to the UK (North Cumbria specifically) from Nigeria soon for a job, and am looking to rent a 2-bed, 2-bath apartment.

I've lived in the tropics my entire life mostly in homes built by my family and accommodation provided by my jobs. So I've never really done this house hunting thing even at home. Navigating the UK rental market will be entirely new to me.

I have an infant and a toddler so obviously safety is my biggest consideration. I'll prefer somewhere close to my intended workplace and childcare options too.

I guess what I'm asking is what are some obvious and not so obvious things to look out for in terms of building structure, utility, hidden costs, winter/weather related issues, etc. I'd rather not have to move in the short term.

Also I know about zoopla and rightmove. What other good resources can I use to view and select a flat?

Thanks in advance!

​

August starter here. What's a typical day like for a GPST1 working at the emergency department? What general or specific skills/competencies would be expected to have been gained ahead of time?

I've been kangarooing my little one, skin to skin, since his 6 week shots 6 hours ago. That's the only way to calm​​ him somewhat even with a dose of paracetamol and applying a mild cold compress on his thighs. So far he has been cycling sleeping, wailing, nursing a bit, and wailing some more. He just screamed so hard he threw up his milk and won't nurse anymore.

I've been propped up again my bed headboard and my back hurts like hell but I'm terrified to move lest I wake him. Thinking of giving another dose of paracetamol if he still wakes up screaming. Also, it's 5pm and I've been up since 3am.

How is your day going?

EE Outland Aug 2025

We recently had a new baby (outside Canada) while our application is in progress. How do we go about adding them to the application? Is there any deadline for this? What supporting documents are needed?

TIA

EE Outland Aug 2025

We recently had a new baby while our application is in progress. How do we go about adding them to the application? Is there any deadline for this? What supporting documents are needed?

TIA