₦airaland Forum

Hello mummies in the house. I'm new here and just stumbled on this thread a few days ago. Please I have a question. My baby is 9 weeks old and we had visitors yesterday whose 4 month old baby has ela (not sure what it is in English)

My question now is- is ela transmissible? Because suddenly today the side of my baby's hair has fallen off and I feel this is too much of a coincidence. Also, I'd like to attack it head on if that's what it is. What would you advise as best course of treatment?

Thank you!

dyeur:
Hello everyone, my wife and I have pitched tent with medical center arlington and all is well. We have gotten a Dr for 2500 and hospital for 4500. It has however been challenging getting a pediatrician as the few we have spoken to seem expensive or dont do rounds at MCA, one with a Nigerian name even said she doesn't do circumcision,.

Does anyone know any good and affordable pediatrician in Arlington that has privileges with Medical Center Arlington?

The initial baby check after birth for hearing, sight and a few other stuff. Is it done by your pediatrician or by another specialist provided for by the hospital?

Does that come at a separate cost?
Advices would be highly appreciated.

I suggest you call the hospital and ask for Pediatricians affiliated with them. My hospital actually gave us a list of Pediatricians they work with for us to contact. Maybe you try that?

ify4charm:
Pls new and old mama's I urgently need advise.

I just put to bed but haven't been able to express any breastmilk since the last 24hrs. LO sucks but nothing comes out. I am still doing skin to skin contact to initiate milk flow. Pls is there anyone who has experienced this and has a solution. Currently she is being bottled fed but i ll like to stop it asap.

Hi Ify. Don't be discouraged. I don't think I started producing till the 3rd day! The lactation consultant kept coming in to see us and said I should just keep trying to feed that it will come eventually. And it did. They also gave me a manual breast pump to use for 20 mins 3 times a day to help stimulate it. The hospital I birthed at wont give a bottle. They said baby will be fine and we should just keep at it. By the third day, we were good to go!

Don't worry, It's a natural process and will happen soon enough. It is well...

herrik066:
hello dear people, I need an advice with regards using Quatar Airways to Dallas. Any one got an experience with them? Please share. God bless.

The only ish I can think of with Qatar is the long layover time. Waiting at the airport for 9 hours up is not beans. Especially if you're travelling alone. But the service is top notch. Very nice air hostesses and reasonable leg room. There's also wifi at Doha so you can catch up on nairaland while waiting

swappylove:
Hi all.
Follow me thank God ooo.my baby girl arrived yesterday. 3weeks early but we r both fine.
Now to stage 2.
Anyone one else in dallas ready to start documentation?

Congratulations!!! God bless you and your LO

damidamsel:
Welcomed my princess at 7.41am weighing 7.2pounds today April 20th 2016 through VD. Hez indeed a good God. Tx to all d info gotten from people on here. It was indeed God n NL all da way.

Pls all those who gave birth with hubby not in the US, when filling d birth cert form, did you fill the information on father's part coz they require d dad to sign? Pls ur response is urgently needed

Congratulations!!! God bless your LO xx

gbolapupo:
I had my interview today with my wife and 2 kids ,we are planning to visit florida for 2 weeks, during the interview the visaOfficer ask my wife if she is pregnant and she said yes ,she then ask if my wife is having her babby in the US and she said yes but not with the 2 weeks family vacation . she then gave is a white paper to provide more details , here are the details of what she ask us to provide,
1, cost estimate for the medical treatment you plan to receive in the US and documentation of how you plan to pay
2, evidence of your financial statues ( eg original bank statement for last fiscal year , affidafit of support
3 , budget for all expenses
4, correspondence of medical facility
please do you have any sample letter format to write the doctor and the sample budget for all expenses ,also do you have any affordable doctor you can recommend my email is adedudu@outlook.com

Have you decided on the state where you'd like to have your baby? If so, try to use the search box to get information on doctors using your chosen hospital. Alternatively, you can actually use the link on the first page of the thread to find a hospital and doctor

Search 'budget sheet' for a sample of budget breakdown or Phema's posts.

You can adapt the letter I used below. Although I had already called to confirm they'll take me on but just sent this email to create correspondence:

You can do these while waiting for other responses.
Good morning,

My name is **** from Lagos, Nigeria. I called your office yesterday to inquire about Dr ****** taking me on as a patient as I intend to come to the US to have my baby due February 2016. I am currently ** weeks pregnant and was told by the lady I spoke with to send my medical records across first.

I have informed my hospital here and they will be sending all records directly to this email address. Kindly look out for it please.

I'll be a self pay patient and will be very pleased if you can take me on.

I look forward to hearing back from you.

xx

Hello everyone... So my missionary journey is coming to an end. I used Centennial Medical Center in Dallas and had the best possible experience. From the doctors to the nurses, the room, hospital food... Everything was 5-star standard. I'm really impressed.
Doctors fee- $3,000
Hospital fee- $3,000
Baby nursery- $618
Anaesthesia- $1,500
Labs- $75 (brought my report from Lagos though so did just a few)
Pediatrician (2 visits)- $209

The only snag was that it took a while for birth certificate to be ready. Didn't get it till my LO was almost 4 weeks old so had to go do passport at the main passport office, took 3 days then applied for Nigerian visa myself online.

Thank God for a beautiful and fulfilling journey. The timing of going back home tho- no fuel, no light, heard the heat is gangster... Kai! God dey

I pray for all about to embark on this journey and those here already waiting that God will perfect everything and grant you favour in Jesus Name, Amen! xx

TheLeakyTribe:
Okay, that's nice. I'm trying to find info about a hospital my doctor practices In so I can stick with her.

Sounds good...

TheLeakyTribe:
So painful ..last time it was 3000 plus 750 for epidural administration. What hospital did you settle for?

Quite painful o because there is one just 5mins from where I'm staying. I settled for Centennial medical center. Also in frisco. So far so good

TheLeakyTribe:
Baylor Medical centre at Frisco.

As at tonight I'm back to looking for new hospital options cos they just sent me a bill that literally blew my mind. They say the changed their self pay billing towards the end of that year.

Oh well. I'm back to doing research, so help me God

Exactly! I was going to use them and even had my first appointment scheduled till I went in and got the cost breakdown!

TheLeakyTribe:
Thanks a lot dear. It's actually from the hospital not the Doctor. Just to be sure are you using a Baylor hospital? Hope I'm not asking too much info.

No you're not asking too much I'm using centennial though

[quote author=TheLeakyTribe post=42186632]I think they had to make that decision in Dallas cos one of the Ebola cases was treated there in Dallas.

Hi @TheLeakyTribe, I just got into Dallas last Tuesday and didn't hear anything about this quarantine. Also had my first hospital appointment this week and no one said anything. My husband will be joining be closer to EDD so I don't think you have anything to worry about.

Safe travels

ifyalways:
MadamTee, it's ridiculous cos besides who I quoted I also noticed that phrase is like an anthem here. Lol

No, I'm not lazy. I actually read pages and pages of this thread which most were frankly filled with kumbaya and banters.

Back to the koko, trust me, this thread would have been much helpful if the first page is tagged with a simple guide like :

Get a hospital/doctor of your choice.
Fill your ds 160 form.
Pay your visa fee.
Get ready for interview. Have all your docs ready eg correspondence with doctor,

Just saying o.

As per humble yourself part of your post. Hahahaha. Internet sha.

Lmao! That's the mantra here na. You have to behave in Rome like the Romans do. Lol. But You're absolutely right about all the steps being placed on the first page. the link to hospitals and costs wasn't there before till someone else suggested it so this is another good suggestion for basic steps to be placed on there too. The only ish is that no one is on NL payroll so when it does get done by justwise, it is out of his commitment and dedication to the cause

Anyone (including you) can create the steps and then tag justwise to place on the front page. Others can contribute and edit and fine tune it till it's perfect. You're a sensible lady sha

Just saying o

ifyalways:
I see this phrase is a sort of mantra here, lol. I actually noticed after my first post here and I want to address it.

I see it as a deadbeat excuse being thrown around here for reasons best known to some of yous here,IMO.

Is it not absolutely ridiculous to expect anyone to read through over 300 pages just to get information. What exactly was the purpose of this thread? For throwing banters, avenue for Mgbekes to feel funky or what? Lol

Oshisco.

@ifyalways... Since you are too lazy to read through the entire thread, Shebi you will humble yourself small so that people will answer you, lol. Just kidding. It's understandable that not everyone will be able to read through everything but there are others who simply enjoy reading and you are in no position to make such generalisations about what is ridiculous or not.

That being said, it depends on what you're looking for- specific information (which you can search for in the search box) or a learning experience which you will gain from reading different scenarios and various CBP and VO encounters. Nonetheless, you'd do what's best for you and tell yourself whatever helps you sleep at night. Just don't become guilty of what you accuse others of by starting to throw banters

Meanwhile God bless you and your hubby for your goodwill o

Hello everyone! So in the spirit of giving back, I created an account on NL.

I had my visa interview back in August last year and although I was already about 3 months pregnant, I genuinely got the visa for vacation purposes as we hadn't decided on where to have LO. However, thats when my own morning sickness decided to start and we ended up not travelling again. A friend introduced me to this thread shortly after as I asked her what the procedure was for birthing in the US. God help us to be dedicated to His word o because if you see how I was reading this thread day and night ehn, like my Bible. When I wake up to pee at night and can't go back to bed, its back to the thread. I read all the threads from Part 1 to 3 and just want to say that anyone who genuinely reads through will have no need to ask questions. Everything has been trashed on here! Thank you so much to all who have kept this thread alive.

Anyways, I sent in my change of intent letter and got the generic response back in October once we had decided and settled for a hospital in Dallas. I arrived DFW POE on Tuesday and below is a transcript of my encounter. In all sincerity, I made no effort to conceal my big belly and just decided to be honest after everything I've learnt here. When it got to my turn, I submitted my passport and the completed landing card, was asked to put my four right fingers on the scanner then my picture taken.

CBP: Why are you here?
Me: To have my baby
CBP: How far along are you?
Me: 34 weeks
CBP: Where is your husband?
Me: He couldn't make it this early because of work but will join me before the delivery.
CBP: Do you know its risky travelling alone when you are this far gone? Any arrangements for help before and after baby is born?
Me: My husband will join me in two weeks (I attempt to bring out his ticket booking)
CBP: Please go to that room on the left, we'd have to verify your passport. Wait till your name is called.
Me:

So I enter this room and see many other people waiting and then I start to pray for favour that I won't have to even wait for so long. After about one and a half hours, i get called in.

CBP: So lets start over, tell me your story.
Me: Regarding?
CBP: Why you are here
Me: To have my baby
CBP: Why did you deny being pregnant at your visa interview
Me: I wasn't asked at all so didn't mention it. Besides we hadn't made up our mind to have our baby here at the time. However, once we made up our minds to do so, I sent a letter to the embassy notifying them of my plans (At this point, I bring out my email to the embassy and their response)
CBP: Are you in touch with any doctor yet?
Me: Yes
CBP: What hospital?
Me: Doctors hospital
CBP: Do you have an appointment yet?
Me: Yes
CBP: How much will it cost you and how much do you have?
Me: (I bring out doctors correspondence with break down while I answer), $9,000
CBP: Do you know you can travel with more?
Me: Yes, but my husband is coming soon so he will bring anything else we'd need
CBP: I see you have family in Maryland, why didn't you go there?
Me: My husbands family is here in Dallas, that's why.
CBP: Please go back and wait outside while I look into this

After another 30 minutes, I get called again that my passport has been stamped (6 months) and I am free to go. Keep all your receipts bla bla bla

It may sound cliche but I really want to thank everyone who has researched, contributed and shared experiences on this thread. It gave me all the confidence I needed to travel alone and handle the questions. With prayers, preparedness and confidence, we can conquer all these POEs o

Thank God for everything! x