Nollywood actress and art curator Chidera Adiele has made a heartbreaking public appeal for assistance after years of carrying the heavy burden of her younger brother’s drug addiction and mental illness.
In an emotional video shared on her Instagram page on Tuesday, Adiele revealed that her brother’s struggles began in 2019 shortly after he gained admission into the University of Lagos. The condition worsened months into his first academic session in 2020 and has now stretched into a seven-year ordeal that has left the family drained.
She disclosed that her brother has been in and out of at least seven psychiatric facilities over the years. These include New York Psychiatric Hospital in Abeokuta, the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital in Yaba, a private facility known as Concept One, another hospital in Gbagada, one in Benin, and most recently the 68 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital also in Yaba.
“He was in the psychiatric ward for three months and they recently asked me to come pick him up because they said they couldn’t keep him there indefinitely. The max they can keep a patient there is three months,” she explained.
After his discharge about a week before the video, the family took him to Zion Ministry in search of spiritual help. Adiele said his condition deteriorated further after he returned from the ministry the previous night.
As the first child and primary caregiver, she has spent heavily on treatments with little lasting progress. She moved out of the family house about five years ago to shield her young daughter from the chaos. However, the family recently returned to her home after their landlord issued a quit notice, bringing the challenges back into her space.
“They’ve brought this drama back to me and worse is I have been his primary caregiver since all of this started. I’ve been the one taking him to all these hospitals,” she said.
Adiele also expressed deep frustration with her parents for not taking fuller responsibility.
“I’m the first child. I’m tired. I’m so tired of carrying responsibilities that I had no business carrying. I’m done being the sacrificial lamb. I’m done being the one who has to take care of everybody and nobody cares about me.”
She noted that her brother has sometimes been spotted wandering the streets of Lagos unclothed, with members of the public contacting her whenever they see him. Her daughter’s safety remains her top priority, yet finding separate accommodation has proven difficult due to high rents in Lagos.
“My daughter sleeps in fear because they are still in my house at the moment. I’ve tried to help them get another apartment but apartments, houses are really crazy expensive,” she added.
Ending the video on a note of exhaustion and desperation, Adiele pleaded openly:
“I’ve done what I can do. I’ve carried him everywhere that I can carry him to… I’m tired. Please, I’m drowning. I need help.”