“Marriage Could Have Ended My Life,” Toke Makinwa Opens Up

Media personality Toke Makinwa has opened up about her past marriage, reflecting on her survival, inner strength, and the misconceptions people had about her journey.

In an interview with Chude Jideonwo, the mother of one spoke candidly about the difficulty of enduring a very public relationship and the harsh judgments she faced from people who never truly understood her experience.

Toke explained that resilience is often misunderstood—people assume things couldn’t have been so bad simply because she survived and kept moving forward. According to her, many are unsettled when others bounce back stronger, feeling threatened rather than inspired by someone’s ability to overcome hardship.

“People try to downplay your pain because you didn’t die. They love tragic stories. But when someone comes back ten times stronger, they envy your strength instead of learning from it. Until you’ve walked in my shoes, don’t comment on my journey,” she said.

She admitted that the public nature of her marriage influenced her decision to leave. If it hadn’t been so exposed, she might have considered staying longer—but the intensity of her feelings and the toxic environment made it unsafe, ultimately forcing her to prioritize her own well-being.

“Could I have stayed if it wasn’t so public? Maybe. But the way I loved this person, staying would have killed me. My feelings were consuming me—it was going to become my whole life,” she added.