PALERMO (ITALPRESS) – There is a student who never feels enough, even when he passes an exam. There is a student living with the weight of expectations on their future. And there is a young woman who takes care of everyone, forgetting to wonder how she is. Three stories. Three different fragilities. Three people who felt overwhelmed, to understand that asking for help does not mean surrendering. From these stories was born the project “Emotions in Athens – A show on invisible fragility”, the initiative promoted by the Third Mission Area of the University of Palermo in collaboration with the SIASP – Integrated Athens Service for the Psychological Support, which has recorded the whole exhausted. At the Steri Monumental Complex, last night, real experiences of psychological discomfort experienced by students of the University became three theatrical monologues, through an artistic elaboration realized in full respect of anonymity and privacy. A moment of community in which the University opened itself to citizenship, promoting a shared reflection on the signs of youth fragility and the importance of listening. On stage, the actors of the CreAzione Teatro Company – Elena Cristiani, Davide Puccetti, Enrico Jacopo Testoni and Francesco Paolino – gave voice to the three monologues, accompanied by the dancer of Teatro Massimo Yuriko Nishihara and pianist Claudia Costanzo. Artistic direction and texts by Silvia Celano. But at the centre they were left: three stories that, although born from individual experiences, managed to speak to many. To give a concrete dimension to the question of psychological support the data of the SIASP, directed by Professor Salvatore Gullo, and presented last night by Professor Maria Stella Epifanio. Since the start of the service, requests have grown steadily. In the last year, from July 2025 to July 2026, 772 requests for help were recorded, 17% more than the previous year. The discomfort crosses different fields of study. The most significant percentages are among the students of Engineering (15.7%), Psychological Sciences, Pedagogical, Physical Exercise and Education (13.7%), Humanities (12.1%) and Medicine (9.7%). Even more significant is the picture that emerges from clinical screenings carried out on a sample of students. 85.8% exceeded the clinical threshold for depressive symptoms, according to the PHQ-9 test, while 78.5% reached the clinical cut-off for anxiety symptoms, measured through the GAD-7. For global psychological distress, detected through CORE-OM, the percentage of students who have passed the clinical threshold instead reaches 95.9%. Important numbers that the University of Palermo has decided to intercept in time, before they can turn into isolation, abandonment of studies or even more complex suffering. “”Emotions in Athens” – said the rector Massimo Midiri – was not only a moment of show, but an act of profound social responsibility. We brought these stories on the stage to break the silence and remember that behind a request for help there are professionals ready to help. I strongly wanted the SIASP to be born as an integrated multidisciplinary service, through the involvement of the branch of Psychological Sciences, Pedagogical, Physical Exercise and Formation (SPPEFF); of the services offered by the Center Orientation and Tutorato (COT), of the professionals of BIomedicina, Neuroscienze and Advanced Diagnostica (BIND) and of the University Medical Ambulatory. «In 2026 – Maria Stella Epifanio del SIASP has emphasized – the service counts on 10 structured psychologists-psychotherapists and 5 specialists supervised, with differentiated paths according to the needs of the students. The goal is to build a culture of listening and prevention”. After the theater, the labs. Today, at the Botanical Garden’ University of Palermo, Experience Lab is scheduled, experiential insights dedicated to time management and emotional recognition. There is also a dance therapy laboratory conducted by Professor Elena Mignosi. The goal is to offer students concrete tools to better understand their lives, give a name to emotions and develop a greater awareness of the relationship with time, study and relationships. To open the work the rector Massimo Midiri, the director of the Third Mission Ada Maria Florena and the director of the Third Mission Area Luca Vazzano. – photo Università degli Studi di Palermo – (ITALPRESS).
