How to Create a Multi-Sensory Room: The Full Experience

What is a Multi-Sensory Room Experience?

A sensory room is a room filled with objects that engage the senses, including fiber optics, essential oils, soft mats, and more. The room can be used to calm people with agitation or anxiety while also engaging those who are more withdrawn from their environment.

Check out this video of a sensory room at the Golisano Children’s Hospital!

What are the benefits of a multi-sensory room?

Studies have found several benefits including improved mood and reduced aggression. The room encourages social interaction and helps increase verbal and nonverbal communication. Other results include a better understanding of their environment, increased comprehension of cause and effect relationships, and an improvement in self-esteem.

Who should use a sensory room?

• All ages from toddlers to adults including:
• Elderly seniors with dementia
• Children with learning disabilities
• People with autism
• Children with challenging behavior
• People with brain injuries
• Mental health patients
• People with physical or mental disabilities
• Those who are in occupational therapy
• People with sensory processing disorders (SPD)

This makes the room a great addition to clinics, offices, nursing homes, assisted living communities, hospitals, and schools.

How much does a room like this cost?

A sensory room can cost up to $30,000 depending on the features you choose.² For a full experience room, you’re probably looking at $20,000-$25,000 dollars. If that’s more than you’re prepared to spend, check out our article on how to create a basic sensory room on a budget. Ready to go all out for your patients? Keep reading!

How to Create A Full Experience Sensory Room

Start Small with a Sensory Corner

This Sensory Corner includes the main components of a sensory room: Fiber Optics Lights Bundle Projector with Scenes Bubble Tubes Mirrors Calming CD It’s a great start for an engaging sensory experience.

Create Your Own Custom Multi-Sensory Room

Do you already have a layout planned? Or are you concerned about fitting everything into your space? Customize the room! Decide what products will work best for your patients and design your own space.

You should try to include products that will engage all the senses including sight, smell, touch, vision, and the vestibular system. Choose the room you’re going to use and get ready to personalize it.

Get Started with a Comfy Space

Your first goal should be to make the place comfortable. Whether this means carpeting, a rug, or a large, padded mat is up to you. Mats provide extra comfort during play. Another great addition is a crash pad, the soft surface is perfect for jumping on, smashing into, and relaxing.

For more dynamic seating, try a saddle roll. It rocks back and forth, but offers more support than a stability ball. Another favorite for both relaxing and sensory play is a ball pit. They provide buoyant support and pressure that can help calm users. The brightly colored balls are also engaging and can make other patients more alert.

Enjoy Stunning Visual Effects

Every sensory room needs some fun things to look at. Color changing fiber optics are a must-have. The light strands can be touched or simply looked at and encourage color recognition and cause and effect skills. A hanging curtain of fiber optics makes them easily accessible to people in standers, wheelchairs, and other seating systems.

Another fun option is a LED fanlight. The five voice activated modes encourage talking, while automatic modes allow the light to be enjoyed by everyone.

Don’t forget bubble tubes! The remote lets your patient choose the color and interact with the room. Encourage visual tracking as the bubbles move up the tube. Add a shatterproof mirror near all of these cool visuals to enhance their effect. The mirror can also be used for play.

Expand the Experience with Sounds and Smells

Music is another component of multi-sensory rooms. You could purchase a portable speaker and play calming sounds or favorite songs. Or set up a sound system to carry the music across the room.

Encourage movement by adding a windchime. Touching the chimes causes them to create music to play for tactile and auditory stimulation.

Ready to add scents? Choose from a variety of essential oils for aromatherapy. You can diffuse a favorite scent like lemon or sweet orange. Or choose based on the oil’s properties, lavender and clary sage has been shown to encourage relaxation while peppermint boosts alertness and concentration.

Add in Tactile Fun

Touch is another sense to consider when creating your sensory room.

You could add tactile balls for your patients to squeeze and manipulate with their hands and cover the floor in different rugs for sensory input for their feet. Looking for vibration? This vibrating pillow is sure to please.

Let’s Move: Swings and Balls

If your patient craves movement consider adding a swing to the sensory room. The Vestibular II System includes several different swing options including a net swing with a positioning seat, a prone net swing, a platform swing, a flexidisc, and a roll swing. Switch them out for different experiences depending on the child.

For a simpler, portable option try an exercise ball. They’re fun to bounce on for adults and children. Plus, you can use it as a seating alternative during activities too.

Enhance Interaction with Accessible Switches

Encourage room exploration with larger switches. The bigger button makes it easier for people with limited mobility to control the room’s environment. Most battery-operated toys require a battery adapter so you can use it with switches.

Look for possible additions that are easy to activate. A High Striker lights up and plays music when the large "gooshy" switch is pressed. When maximum force is applied the child is rewarded with lights, music, vibration, and spinning glitter. It engages the auditory and visual senses. A Therapeutic Manipulator rewards interactions like pressing a button, twisting a knob, pulling, or twisting with lights, music, and vibration in the dome. Check out the children’s toy section at stores for other ideas to add to your clinic’s multi-sensory room.

Relax with Blankets, Cozy Areas, and More

Some children like small, more confined spaces. A tunnel is a fun place to crawl through or just lay down in. You can even connect them together. Then collapse it for storage so you have room for other activities. Or add a padded rainbow barrel for rocking. You could also section off a corner using curtains.

Many children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) find pressure soothing. A snug hug provides full body pressure and doubles as a soft blanket. It can be used in the sensory room or to ease transitions when leaving the office. A weighted blanket can also be comforting and help your patients feel secure.

A multi-sensory room can help both children and adults. Use the room to help reduce agitation or prompt engagement in a relaxing environment. Start building your room today!

Would your patients benefit from a more active room? Check out our suggestions for a sensory room based on movement!

References

1. Christopher Douglas Hidden Angel Foundation. (n.d.). Multi Sensory Environments: The Benefits. Hidden Angel Foundation. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/3gTL0Ab
2. Cooper-Jones. B. (n.d.). Sensory Rooms: A treat for the senses and a treatment for dementia? Hospital News. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/3iPBQVZ
3. Morgens, N. (2017). Do Sensory Rooms for Dementia Work? Skylark Senior Care. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/3fRzbsU

Medical Disclaimer: The information provided on this site, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational purposes only and are not intended to substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other healthcare professional with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.