Why You're Always Tired, Anxious or Angry — And How to Regain Control As A Nigerian

I know you are tired. You’re constantly doing the math: how to stretch ₦10K until the next alert.

Then your phone rings and your heart skips, is it a bank deduction message, another family demand, or just MTN playing with your emotions?

You’re not alone. And you’re not mad. You’re living in Nigeria. And it’s a lot. It goes beyond money, There's just so much pressure.

I am not a mental health specialist but I want to let you understand that someone gets you, and to share what actually works and can help you regain control. I am also aware that various scenarios and situations leads to specific choices, so I am not here to Judge you on anything as you'll see in this article. I want to help.

But Here’s the Problem…

When you're always in survival mode, your body learns to function in stress. Your nervous system gets stuck in fight-or-flight - not because you’re weak but because you’ve been in the chaos too long.
You can’t rest properly.
You can’t focus.
You get angry easily.

You're greedy and make self sabotaging decisions sometimes.
And you don’t know why you suddenly feel like crying. The pressure.
This is what chronic stress does.
And it’s more common in Nigeria today than we admit. Like I said earlier, I understand you and I am not here to point out any flaw or drag you.

What Mental Health Looks Like Here

We weren’t raised to talk about our minds. In most homes, crying meant you were looking for pity.

Depression was "laziness." And seeing a therapist? That’s for “oyibo people.”
But now we’re grown and the trauma hasn’t disappeared.
It’s just deeper, buried under work, expectations, and endless pressure.

First step is understanding that, this is not okay, don't blame your parents and other people for how you feel now - that's just dramatic and unwise. I pointed this out so you can take responsibility, make wiser decisions, set boundaries and talk about these things openly. If a therapist is your vibe, feel free to see one.

What’s Really Happening?

Lets get a bit factual, these are signs that something's off and you're not just being “dramatic”:

Symptom	What It Might Mean
Always exhausted	Cortisol overload (stress hormone fatigue)
Losing interest in things	Early signs of depression
Always anxious or overthinking	Nervous system dysregulation
Outbursts/irritation	Emotional burnout
Insomnia or poor sleep	Mental hyperstimulation

Here’s What You Can Actually Do About It

This isn’t some “just be positive” yeye advice. So let’s talk about practical, Naija-reality solutions:

1. Name It. Then Track It.

If you're feeling weird, say it out loud without reacting Emotionally.
“I’m overwhelmed.”
“I haven’t been feeling like myself.”
Use your Notes app to track your moods weekly, so you can see what got you angry, what's stealing your energy, and start to keep your space clean.

2. Your Nervous System Needs Safety

Create mini pockets of calm:
5-minute silence in the morning before your day begins.
Breathing routines: Try 4–7–8 breathing (inhale for 4s, hold 7s, exhale 8s).
Avoid loud chaos (music, noise, drama) when already overwhelmed.

3. Move Your Body, Gently

You don’t need a gym if you can't afford one now.
15-minute walks.
Stretching.
Dancing to Wizkid, Davido or Burna in your room, I hardly do this lol.
Movement helps your body discharge stress.

4. Talk to Someone — Mainly your parents

Don’t bottle it all in.
Talk to your Parents - sometimes pressure can be coming from them, so instead of getting emotional breakdowns and fighting with them, talk to them. A trusted friend. Or anonymous platforms like Mentally Aware Nigeria (MANI) or SheWritesWoman.

5. Cut Down Your Input

Your brain is not designed to consume everything.
Unfollow pages that make you feel anxious.
Reduce doom-scrolling, all that directionless entertainment and gender transformers you're following in Nigeria, unfollow them, they have nothing important to say, and it’s likely killing your peace slowly.

Small Habits That Build Mental Strength Over Time

Habit	Why It Works
Daily journaling	Helps you offload internal noise
Sleep tracking	Lack of rest is linked to anxiety
Water + healthy food	Nutrition affects mood more than we know
Saying “no”	Boundaries reduce overwhelm
Scheduled rest	Breaks are not laziness, they’re fuel

Your anxiety about money isn't the main focus of this article because I know that's just pressure, relax. Don't fall for it. Anyway, we have a lot of make money ideas on this blog you may find useful.

Mental Health Is Not Luxury. It’s Necessity.

You can’t “hustle” your way out of a broken mental state. Money won't also take away all the pressure and you can’t succeed if your mind is always screaming in the background.
Give yourself permission to rest.
To pause.
To reset.
The stress you feel is not just because you're working hard, you’re carrying too much.
You deserve a life that includes joy, not just survival or hustle.