On March 18th and 19th, 2025, CEO Nick attended the Council of Europe’s Seminar on Mental Health, where Young Expert Irene from Italy was also present. They participated in discussions about Wellbeing.
The event was interesting and somewhat controversial, yet filled with positive energy aimed at empowering Youth Work to better support young people’s mental health. Young Expert Irene shares her thoughts…
Hi! I’m Irene, a young expert of EYMH. Nick, the CEO, and I had the pleasure to attend the seminar on youth mental health and wellbeing in Strasbourg. We met for two days with youth workers, psychologists and researchers and I’m writing because I want to share 3 intakes plus a personal detail from my experience.
1. Precarity – the most used word on the first day of the seminar.
We talked about the drivers of mental health, and I felt very validated when we discussed some structural problems we are experiencing, such as a precarious and uncertain climate due to wars, climate change, housing crisis and insufficient wages that can’t lead us to build our future with the stability we need. Also we discussed a lot about how social media can be part of the solution instead of the problem, a theme that EYMH cares about.
2. All young people should have the same rights but not all young people are treated the same!
We acknowledge that the young people are a diverse group with different needs and policies have to take this into consideration, providing the right support to the young people and training to the professionals.
3. Policies: what policies the EU has on mental health?
What policies does Italy or Spain or Germany have for example? We have learned about some policies that are exemplary, such as free therapy for up to 23 years in Finland, and there are still states that do not have a strong policy.
At the seminar, we discussed these policies in small groups and that’s where I felt I could contribute as a young expert. I enjoyed this conversation because we were also thinking about how to improve these policies, and that’s when I shared a bit of my experience.
I am from Italy, with 20 regions. 5 of them are called “autonomous regions”, which enjoy special funding based on some socio-geographical characteristics. I got my bachelor’s degree in one of these regions in Northern Italy and the public health system there works much better than in the rest of the state. I had the opportunity to do psychotherapy for 2 years by paying a regular hospital ticket, which costs 36 euros, for every 8 sessions! And I did it by saving money from my pocket. I could finally get the therapy I had always needed because it was finally accessible and anonymous.
From my experience, I can say that these two aspects: economic accessibility and anonymity are fundamental for a national service that can help not only some people, but all young people who more than ever in this period find themselves with less or no economic stability.
Since I don’t want to end on a pessimistic note, even though we see that we still have a long road ahead of us, I would like to say one last thing. Personally, I want to thank all the youth workers and professionals who, despite the multiple crises and the lack of adequate policies, are here for us. Attending this workshop, with the help of Nick, made me feel validated, finally seen. I came home with a deep sense of gratitude and, as a psychology student, with a greater will to fight for a better system for our well-being and mental health!
Thanks for reading. Below are some photos from event, as well as Irene’s video, which can be seen across our social media.
