While working at the De Hartenberg Institute in Holland, a center for people with cognitive disabilities, the two therapists learned of the positive responses a colleague was able to elicit from his severely challenged clients when they were exposed to a sensory environment he had assembled.

The environment stimulates the primary senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell, through the use of lighting effects, tactile surfaces, meditative music and the odor of relaxing essential oils.

Time spent in a sensory room has been shown to increase concentration, alertness, calmness, and general awareness of the surrounding world.