A Nigerian lady based in the U.K has dished out an advice to those who are hoping to relocate to the European country.
In a video she shared on her TikTok page, @preshe_vibe she said those preparing to come should also prepare for depression as they’ll be depressed at least five times a week.
She also claimed they will battle with mental health issues and emotional stress even if they felt they were strong in Nigeria.
“I will never advise you not to come to the UK, my brother feel free to come o. But let me advice you based on experience…prepare for depression. Prepare to be depressed at least five times in a week.
“No matter how strong you think you are, when you get here, you ain’t strong. It’s a totally different thing. Depression, mental health, emotional stress, everything.
She added that for her, Nigeria still has the best food, music and remains her favourite country to live in, despite the challenges.
“You won’t believe if I tell you am on my way back sis. Making plans honey. I can’t come and die for nothing,” he added.
Other Nigerians residing in the UK also took to twitter to share their experiences, corroborating the warning that life could get lonely and force one to slip into depression sometimes.
In a twitter space session hosted for the Nigerian community in the UK on Sunday, a member of the community named Dare who is studying conservation biology at Napier University said he sometimes is bothered by the fact that he is the only dark-skinned person in his class.
“In my course, I’m not the only Nigerian, I’m the only black person. If you come to my campus, I’m not sure you can see ten dark-skinned people at a particular point in time.
“So if you’re coming to Edinburgh Scotland, or places like Aberdeen or Dundeen, you might be the only black person in the next 200-meter radius. At some point, if they count 100, 000 people, you might be the only black person.
“So prepare for the shock especially if you’re coming around August-September because that’s when we have a lot of tourists in the city,” he said.
Another member of the community, who identified himself as Azubike lamented that it can really be lonely sometimes and most Nigerians find solace in working round the clock.
“It all boils down to the whole loneliness thingy. If you don’t have people to talk to, or people to go out with basically and spend the money, then it means you should be making more money,” he said.
Also contributing to the discussion, Oluwalesi said that the loneliness experienced can have psychological implications.
“Depression is real in this country, it’s not a joke. Loneliness is a problem here. Where you have barely nobody to talk to, you are always online or studying. I think it has a psychological effect,” he said.
A Council of Europe report gives a figure of 100,000 Nigerians in the UK but suggests that this is likely to be an underestimate since it does not include irregular migrants or children born outside of Nigeria.