August 11, 2023

Nutrition specialist and body-builder Makgato Maite opens up about surviving abuse, child loss and depression

Spending time on social media can be derailing, but sometimes you learn valuable lessons. Scrolling through TikTok landed me on the account of Makgato Maite, a nutrition specialist and body-builder who is the epitome of strength and resilience.

In a 17-part video series on TikTok, the former Miss Limpopo (2015) spoke about surviving abuse, losing a child and finding herself all over again.

After finishing matric, Maite left home to live with her boyfriend at the time. She had no ambition and would follow the guy everywhere he went.

A few months into cohabiting, the guy started cheating. What made things worse was that he cheated on her with her best friend.

"He was not just cheating on me, he was cheating with people close to me. He went to the extent of cheating with my best friend, a woman that I trusted with all my heart and considered a sister."

As a beauty queen titleholder, Maite decided to distract herself by coaching girls on how to model. All was well until her boyfriend started asking out the girls she was coaching. The boyfriend eventually dated one of the girls.

But that didn't stop Maite from being in a relationship with him. Instead, she fell pregnant, hoping that he would change. And he did change but for the worst. He became physically abusive to Maite, more so after she caught him with his new girl at a restaurant and confronted them.

"When I entered the shop, I saw the girl sitting on his lap. I had a can of cold drink in my hand, and because I was angry and miserable, I hit the girl with the can on her head. I am not proud of that, but that's what happened. There was a lot of commotion, and when one of the ladies working at the shop saw the fight, she chased us out."

When they got home, the couple carried on fighting until Maite fell on her tummy, and that's when she decided to stop. She was six months pregnant at the time and, a month later, she gave birth to a premature baby boy.

"My baby wasn't fine, he couldn't breathe on his own. They had to transfer us to Mankweng Hospital and we stayed there for two months. At the hospital, my boyfriend wasn't showing up for me or the baby. He would make occasional visits once after two weeks or so.

"Luckily my family was there for me. My mom came to see me every day after work. My sister and my dad would come every weekend. They were there for me, and that's what kept me strong."


Depression hit her when she was in the hospital and her child's health started deteriorating. The baby struggled with his breathing and was diagnosed with jaundice but prayer kept him alive.

Eventually, they were discharged from the hospital and Maite when back to her boyfriend while the baby remained home with her family.

"I allowed this boy back into my life. My family was surprised. My mom was shocked. She said, ‘Maite, after everything, are you really bringing this guy back into your life?' I told her I wanted to give him another chance, maybe things will be different."