Nigerian immigrants face hidden mental health challenges despite success, expert warns

Nigerian immigrants may achieve professional and personal success in their host countries while battling hidden mental health challenges arising from migration, identity changes and prolonged stress, a mental health professional, Kehinde Ekpudu, has said.

Ekpudu, who holds MBA and Master of Social Work degrees and is a Registered Clinical Social Worker (RCSW), highlighted the psychological consequences of migration in a presentation titled “Beyond Survival: Nigerian Immigrant Mental Health—Lived Experiences, Identity and the Brain.”

The occasion was the maiden Nigerian Mental Health Summit held online to commemorate World Mental Health Day yesterday.

The presentation examined the relationship between migration, identity, the brain and mental health, drawing attention to the emotional pressures immigrants may experience while adjusting to life in a new country.

“When we talk about immigrant success, we celebrate how well people survive. But what happens when survival becomes a way of being?” Ekpudu asked, challenging the tendency to measure immigrant success primarily by professional achievements and the ability to adapt.

According to the presentation, Nigerians do not arrive in their host countries without established identities, experiences and cultural backgrounds. Rather, migration involves more than moving from one geographical location to another; it also represents a psychological and identity transition.

The presentation noted that immigrants may have to reconcile several identities simultaneously, including being Nigerian, African, Black, Canadian, a professional, a partner, a parent or a son or daughter.

“Migration can require us to renegotiate part of ourselves that once felt settled,” it stated.

Ekpudu also cited a 2023 study by Aluh and other researchers, which found that 51.7 per cent of Nigerian immigrants in a Canadian study screened positive for depression.

The presentation further noted that residing in Canada for more than 10 years was significantly associated with greater odds of screening positive for depression.

The finding challenges the assumption that the psychological difficulties associated with migration necessarily diminish as immigrants spend more time in their host countries.

Beyond depression, the presentation identified constant adaptation, uncertainty and chronic stress as factors that could affect immigrants’ nervous systems and emotional well-being.

Possible consequences include hypervigilance, anxiety, sleep disruption, emotional exhaustion, difficulty concentrating and burnout.

“Sometimes what looks like resilience from the outside is a nervous system that has become very good at surviving,” Ekpudu said.

The presentation suggested that behaviours often interpreted as resilience may sometimes reflect the effects of prolonged psychological pressure, particularly when individuals feel compelled to remain strong despite emotional difficulties.

It also examined how cultural expectations can influence the way Nigerian immigrants understand and communicate mental health challenges.

Expressions such as “I’m just tired,” “It’s just stress,” “God will help me,” “I need to be stronger,” “Other people have it worse” and “I can’t fall apart” were identified as common ways people might describe or respond to emotional difficulties without openly acknowledging their mental health needs.

According to the presentation, such responses may reflect the pressure some immigrants feel to remain strong, fulfil family responsibilities and continue pursuing success, even when they are struggling emotionally.

Titled “Beyond Survival,” the presentation called attention to the need to consider immigrants’ lived experiences, identities and physical and psychological well-being when discussing mental health.

It outlined a pathway from survival to self-trust built around three principles: belonging, integration and thriving.

Under the framework, belonging means being able to establish connections without abandoning one’s identity; integration involves accepting and balancing multiple identities; while thriving means recognising that life can offer more than simply surviving daily challenges.

“I can belong without abandoning myself,” the presentation stated, describing the first principle.

It added: “I can hold multiple identities” and “My life can be more than survival.”

The presentation was delivered under Twin Ocean, whose motto is “Navigating life’s waves together.”

The Convener of the Nigerian Mental Health Summit (NMHS), Dr. Oluyinka Oyeniji, called for an inclusive national approach to mental healthcare that recognises the lived experiences of patients, caregivers, families and other people affected by mental health conditions.

Oyeniji made the call yesterday in his opening remarks at the maiden Nigerian Mental Health Summit held  to commemorate World Mental Health Day.

The summit, organised in collaboration with the Ladoke Akintola Neuroscience Group (LNG), brought together mental health advocates, healthcare professionals, researchers and other stakeholders to discuss challenges and opportunities for improving mental healthcare in Nigeria.

According to Oyeniji, the summit was established to promote positive change in the country’s mental health sector and strengthen efforts towards a coordinated national response to mental health challenges.

He said the event was particularly significant at a time when many Nigerians were experiencing mental health challenges either directly or through their responsibilities as caregivers, family members and friends.

The convener also highlighted the Federal Government’s move to decriminalise attempted suicide, describing it as a significant development following more than 14 years of advocacy.

He commended stakeholders who had sustained the campaign for the reform and urged Nigerians to support efforts aimed at improving mental healthcare and protecting the rights of people living with mental health conditions.