From Illness to Disability: Changing the Mental Health Conversation in Nigeria

Living with a ‘mental illness’ is being in a constant battle with a term that has long been associated with “madness”, penance for witchcraft and somehow not being strong enough to handle what everyone else is going through. It is somehow realising that you fell off the wagon while everyone else weathered the storm.

As my work in giving mental health a voice in Nigeria continues to evolve, I am constantly faced with new ways of looking at mental health. Not just because of my diagnosis, but for the nearly 60 million Nigerians who live with ‘mental disorders’, according to the Federal Ministry of Health.

For me, I see my life experience as...different. I find that with the right understanding, accommodations and environment, I thrive unhinged. So, is something “wrong” with me? Or am I “different” in a way that is not yet widely understood?