Living with a chronic, painful, invisible illness does a number to a person. Ngozi stopped telling people she was in pain after her fourth visit to the hospital because she was tired of seeing the look on their faces. Instead, she started smiling through it, telling everyone she is fine. And somewhere in the middle of managing her blood, she quietly stopped managing her mind.
The Part Nobody Sees
Living with Sickle Cell Disease often comes with a higher risk of depression and anxiety. This is a global reality as shown by various studies. However, in Nigeria, mental health is rarely talked about or properly funded. Because of this, the emotional struggle of the disease is often ignored.
What Family and Friends Can Do
You do not need to be a therapist to help but you can begin by asking real questions. Not "are you okay?" but "how have the last few weeks actually been for you?" and listen without immediately offering solutions. Also, do not compare their experience to someone else's own. Do not make statements like - "at least it is not cancer.”
And if you are the one living with SCD, please know that asking for emotional support is not a weakness. You are already managing something incredibly hard and you do not have to manage it alone and in silence.
Nigeria is slowly getting better at talking about mental health and Sickle Cell communities deserve to be part of that conversation. As much as the blood crisis gets attention, the emotional crisis needs it too.
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