["Ti sento": when an invisible illness needs to be believed.]

Invisible chronic diseases raise a question that goes beyond diagnosis and treatment: how can suffering be acknowledged when it cannot always be seen, measured, or confirmed by diagnostic tests? This contribution originates from 12 qualitative interviews involving patients, caregivers, and female medical students and residents, followed by a survey involving 129 people living with chronic diseases. The study explores the relationship between disease invisibility, listening, and the therapeutic relationship. The narratives show that failure to recognize pain may itself become a source of suffering, affecting everyday life, identity, relationships, and trust in healthcare professionals. At the same time, participants describe how a word, a gesture, or genuine attention can profoundly change the experience of illness. The work concludes with a reflection grounded in narrative medicine and translated into an interactive installation, Ti sento ("I hear you"), conceived as a space for listening, recognition, and sharing.