Every 40 seconds, someone in the world takes their own life. In Africa, the World Health Organisation reports that young people between the ages of 15 and 29 are the most affected.
Life in our society often feels like an endless exam. No matter your age, there’s always another test, another expectation, another box you are supposed to tick. And if you don’t, suddenly you are “not serious” or “not enough.” Social norms are the invisible rules that dictate how people should think, act, or live. While they can shape behaviour in meaningful ways, when they become rigid and unforgiving, they harm more than they help.
Society never seems to pause in reminding young people of what they should be doing next. As a student, the pressure is to get all A’s. Graduate, and the question becomes: “Where’s the job?” Land a job, and it quickly shifts to: “So, when are you getting married?” Get married, and suddenly it’s: “When will you have kids?” The cycle never ends. At every stage, there’s this invisible checklist waving in our faces, as if life is a race and everyone must run at the same speed. And when you fall behind, you begin to feel like you’ve failed, even when in reality you are still learning. That hidden mental strain is the silent weight nobody talks about.
Yet culture itself isn’t the enemy—it is part of our identity and way of life. The problem begins when culture transforms into a cage, suffocating the very people it is meant to guide. This is where society needs to do better. We must begin to normalise patience, to accept that not everyone’s journey will look the same. Families should stop measuring children’s worth by milestones, and communities need to stop shaming young people for having a different process. Employers, parents, friends—we all must learn to replace pressure with support, because sometimes, just listening without judgment can save a life.
For young people, living under the weight of expectations can be crushing, but it is important to remember that your worth is not tied to society’s checklist. You are allowed to move at your own pace and not measure your life against someone else’s timeline. It means learning to set boundaries with family, friends, and even online spaces so that constant comparisons don’t drain you. It means building a support system of people who uplift you, speaking about your struggles even if the first person doesn’t understand, and most importantly, investing in your mental health. Society will always speak, but you alone decide how loudly its voice echoes in your life.
As youths, we also carry the responsibility of refusing to swallow pressure as though it were truth. You are not your grades, your job title, your marital status, or your bank account. You are a whole human being, deserving of love and respect regardless of where you fall on society’s so-called timeline.
And at the end of the day, we must ask ourselves: what is the point of culture if it crushes the very people it is meant to shape? Perhaps the real change begins when both society and the youth agree that mental well-being is more important than any social norm.
— Mosimiloluwa | Writer @ Campus Cares