Most children who have autism are sensory seekers. They interpret sensory inputs differently than their peers and either want to be stimulated more or calmed down more. Let's first look at what I mean by a sensory room, in case you are unfamiliar.

**H3 What is a Sensory Room and How Does it Help Your Child?
A sensory room is a room that is dedicated to sensory experiences. This means that it's a room that is constructed to give your child different sensory inputs than they usually get.
Sensory rooms are used to create a calm, safe environment for your child, and can also help develop key life skills, like gross motor skills, color recognition, vocalization, and tracking.
Sensory rooms come from the practice of Sensory Integration Therapy, where using sensory input is used to help either calm or stimulate your child to help them deal with their stress levels and feeling of well-being. Sensory Integration Therapy has been around since the 1960's, but it seems like the science is just starting to catch up here in the last decade or so.
Let's quickly take a look at a few studies backing sensory integration. In 2004, Tina Champagne, M.Ed., and her colleague Edward Sayer, Psy.D looked at how sensory rooms affected patients at the Cooley-Dickinson Hospital's acute care psychiatric unit. What they found was that the patients who used the sensory room reported a positive response and a decrease in perceptions of distress [43].
This is great to hear! While your child may or may not relate to being in a psychiatric hospital, almost all of us can relate to things that make us feel calm and less stressed. This is what Champagne's work is pushing forward. In 2006, she conducted another study that supported the findings of the first [44].
Also, in 2014, a study published in Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders with the long title of "An Intervention for Sensory Difficulties in Children with Autism: A Randomized Trial", found that children who used integration therapy scored significantly higher than those that didn't in Goal Attainment Scales, self-care, and socialization [45].
** H3 What if We Are on a Budget?
If you know anything about sensory rooms, you may know them from professional settings, like a local clinic.
If there's one thing I want to make clear to you is that we don't have to replicate what we see there! While we can imitate it, most of us are on a budget and might not even have an entire room to dedicate as a sensory room!
I want you to know, that there are very affordable ways to build your child a sensory room (or sensory corner in their bedroom) that they can utilize every day. All we have to do is get a little creative and find the big wins that cost the least amount of money.
**H3 Guidelines for Starting Your Sensory Room
You're ready to start building your child their own little sensory area that they can use daily or maybe you're adding to the little project you have going on now. Whatever it is, using these guidelines can lay an excellent foundation for your child's favorite new spot!
First, you want to keep in mind that you can grow your child's sensory room over time. Don't feel like you need to go out and spend $1,000 today. The idea is to start with the big wins first, then start adding things as your budget affords.
Secondly, make sure you bring your child in on this project. If you two can bond over it, and give them a sense of ownership in the sensory room, they'll take to it better, and you'll both enjoy the experience!
Looking at the actual spot, there are a few things we want to consider. First is the safety of the area. Keeping it away from cords, corners, hard surfaces (like a brick fireplace), and outlets is a good start.
Next, you'll want to make sure there are no fluorescent lights. Most of us already know these can be irritating, so they're good to avoid for your child's sensory room. If you have one and can't get rid of it or replace it, cover it with heat safe paper to dim it, or use something else for lighting, like Christmas lights hanging from the ceiling.
The last thing you want to take into account is the color of the room. You want it to be a calming color, so bright red is probably not a good choice. You can ask your child which color makes them feel the calmest. Popular colors are greens, blues or tan.
Now, let's get into the list of what you should start adding to your sensory room (or corner)!
**H3 Vestibular Input aka a Swing!
Vestibular Input is a fancy for word for the feeling of swinging. This is one of the most common additions to people's sensory rooms and is one of those big win tickets we talked about earlier.
Since you got this guide as a bonus for buying our pod swing, then you already have this covered!
**H3 Visual Inputs and Lighting
Having some awesome colored lights is a great addition to any sensory room. Hanging colored Christmas lights from the ceiling (keeping the cord away from the child) are an easy win since they are an inexpensive option available at your local store.
While you're there, you can grab colored light bulbs at a very reasonable price to add some more color.
While there are more ways to add lighting, those are two easy ways to do it on a budget.
** H3 Aromatherapy
This is another easy sensory experience to add! While you may just want to grab an air freshener at your local store, a lot of them contain harmful chemicals. An easy way to get the benefit of aromatherapy without the chemicals is to get some essential oils. You can dab just a little bit on a light bulb, which will warm the oil and release the scent.
If you are looking for calming scents, vanilla, lavender, peppermint, or jasmine are good choices. If your child wants more stimulating ones, cinnamon, floral scents, or spices work well.
** H3 Proprioception aka Feeling Squished and Hugged
This is another one of the most common aspects of Sensory Integration Theory. Most children with SPD or on the spectrum love the feeling of being hugged. While I know you wish you could provide all the hugs your child would ever need, you can accomplish this is other ways!
A common product is a weighted blanket. Our Pod Hanging Swing accomplishes this effect as well since children can fit snuggly in it (don't forget your discount). Or combine the weighted blanket and swing for a calming combination.
** H3 Tactile, Touching, and Feeling
A lot of times, all your child wants is something unusual to play with, something that has a fun interesting texture.
These products may already be around your house! Providing your child with Play-Doh or finger paints can accomplish this.
** H3 Auditory
The last sensory topic we'll cover is auditory. This is another easy addition to your sensory room.
If you have a CD player or MP3 player, you can easily hook it up to your speakers to play calming music for your child. Popular choices are nature sounds, white noise, or classical music.