Snoezelen multi-sensory stimulation rooms: what are they and what are they for?

A summary of the characteristics and functions of Snoezelen multisensory stimulation rooms.

The senses are the means by which we acquire information from the world and also relate to it. Sight, hearing, touch... all the senses are used to learn about our immediate environment and how to respond to it.

It often happens that in many mental disorders and brain diseases there are certain alterations in the way of perceiving the environment, usually due to cognitive impairment, which, if not managed properly, can lead to a significant reduction in the patient's well-being.

In order to avoid this, there are the Snoezelen multisensory stimulation rooms.These tools are perfect for therapy for people with different perception and cognition problems, as well as for recreational purposes. Let's discover what they are and their great utility.

What are the Snoezelen multisensory stimulation rooms?

The senses of the human body allow us to perceive what is around us, in addition to perceiving ourselves and in relation to space.

The organs in which these senses are located are the vehicle through which we can receive information from the environment and emit a response according to what we perceive. Sight, touch, hearing, smell and taste are the well-known classic senses, although there are more: balance, heat perception, proprioception, nociception...

The senses activate our brain and allow us to train it.They are a very important factor for development, interaction and learning in our species. They are a very important factor for the development, interaction and learning in our species, which is why in case of having any altered sense, whether congenital or acquired, the affected person has great disadvantages when processing and understanding the world around him.

People with a mental disorder, dementia, cognitive impairment or developmental disorders may suffer alterations in one or more of their sensory systems, which translates into having certain difficulties in receiving sensations, which causes alterations in their development and in their ability to acquire new knowledge. In addition to this, they may also present alterations in their behavior and mood.

One of the most widespread ideas in clinical psychology, especially applied in the treatment of people with cognitive impairment, is that sensations can help us to reconnect them with the reality that surrounds them, despite presenting alterations in their perception. That is why many therapies is why many therapies take sensory stimulation as a very useful tool.This is what is carried out in the Snoezelen multisensory stimulation rooms.

Snoezelen rooms are used with the main objective of promoting the feeling of well-being of the participants through sensory stimulation, providing stimuli that enter through different senses. The idea is to create a rich and varied experience, in which all kinds of stimulation take part in the form of sounds, lights, colors, smells, textures or even flavors. Thanks to the multisensory stimulation carried out in these rooms, people with cognitive impairment are helped to interact with the environment and become aware of their own body and being.

Origins of Snoezelen rooms

The therapeutic concept behind the Snoezelen multi-sensory stimulation rooms has its origins in the 1970s by Dutch therapists Jan Hulsegge and Ad Verheul.. This strange word comes from Dutch, being the fusion of "snuffelen", which means "to smell" and "doezelen" which means "to doze", and combined they give rise to something like "to be impregnated with relaxing sensations".

Hulsegge and Verheul's multisensory stimulation proposal began to gain relevance in the 1990s, being approached in a scientific way and acquiring a greater therapeutic and playful interest.

It arrived in Spain around the year 2000, and in the last two decades it has been gaining more and more relevance thanks to its great usefulness in the treatment and improvement of the mental health of patients with diseases and disorders where cognitive abilities are compromised. thanks to its great usefulness in the treatment and improvement of the mental health of patients with diseases and disorders where cognitive abilities are compromised.

What can we find in one of these rooms?

The activity of multisensory stimulation is carried out in specifically enabled physical spaces, being these the rooms of stimulation multisensorial.These are the Snoezelen multisensory stimulation rooms themselves.

These rooms are prepared to provide sensory experiences through sounds, tactile interactions, smells, light sensations, tastes and other stimuli that are normally distributed in different areas of the room depending on the senses to be stimulated, although there are also elements used to stimulate several senses at the same time.

Visit the elements that can be found in a Snoezelen room are we have:

• Lamps and light projectors of different colors, shapes and intensities.
• Luminous fibers
• Pushbuttons, switches and tactile panels that activate lights and sounds.
• Mirrors and all kinds of reflective surfaces
• Objects with shapes, colors, materials, textures, hardness of all kinds
• Bubble columns
• Objects that produce sounds when touched
• Aroma diffusers, scented objects, oils...
• Liquid, solid, salty, sweet foods...
• Biting and chewing toys
• Elements for relaxation such as mats, puffs, armchairs, rocking chairs...
• Music players
• Musical instruments
• Waterbed with vibration to the beat of the music

The great variety of objects and effects that they produce allow those who enter this type of rooms to receive all kinds of stimuli, a multisensory stimulation useful both in therapy and for purely recreational purposes. In a therapeutic context, it may happen that the therapists lead the session and direct the application of the stimuli, helping the patient to become aware of what is happening in the room. helping the patient to become aware of what is happening around him/her and inviting him/her to interact with the objects, while in other cases the patient is left completely free to interact with the objects.In others, patients are left free to browse and use the objects in the room at their own free will.

But, as can be deduced from all the furniture that is usually found in these rooms, these spaces are more expensive to set up. For this reason, we can resort to the alternative of using multisensory stimulation carts, which have objects that can be used in a similar way to those found in the Snoezelen rooms. Although these carts do not generate a degree of immersion or stimulation as great as the rooms specifically designed for this purpose, they have the advantage that they are transportable, so that a multisensory stimulation environment can be created anywhere.

What are the benefits of multisensory stimulation?

Since Snoezelen multisensory stimulation rooms have been in the spotlight of scientific research, several benefits have been attributed to them. Among the main ones, we can highlight the following:

• Relaxation
• Increased independence
• Development of self-confidence
• Self-control
• Increased exploration of the environment
• Increased performance of creative abilities
• Improved communication skills
• Contributes to well-being
• It is a fun activity
• Promotes the ability to make choices
• Increases attention and concentration time
• Reduces mood swings
• Avoids behavioral disturbances

While it has been assumed that rooms of this type bring all these benefits, it is worth mentioning that they are still the subject of scientific research to determine their true effectiveness. Nevertheless, the scientific literature indicates that Snoezelen multisensory stimulation rooms prove to be useful for people with mental disorders, mental health problems, mental retardation, and other conditions. useful for people with mental disorders, chronic pain, people with intellectual disabilities, and elderly people with cognitive impairment, as well as helping to regulate the state of the brain.They also help to regulate mood and behavior in both children and adults without any psychopathology, enjoying them as leisure.

It has been especially studied in patients with Alzheimer's disease and in cases of cognitive impairment, conditions in which people have severe difficulties in controlling their psychomotor skills. In Alzheimer's disease, cognitive, behavioral and emotional abilities are affected, aspects that Snoezelen multisensory rooms can address and stimulate.

When Alzheimer's disease is at a very advanced stage, it is difficult for the person to understand the world around him/her.. For this reason, stimuli as basic as an aroma or a song that evokes memories, or a moving light that awakens their interest and curiosity can be a breakthrough, especially because they motivate the user to interact with the environment and feel better. Other benefits of Snoezelen spaces for Alzheimer's patients are:

• Improves behavior and mood.
• Reduces apathy
• Reduces behavioral disturbances
• Reduces anxiety
• Improves balance in people with dementia

Example of intervention with Snoezelen

Although each psycho-pedagogical office, nursing home or toy library may have its own intervention protocol using Snoezelen multisensory stimulation, we can give as a fairly general example the following guideline in this particular case with elderly people and in sessions of between 30 and 45 minutes.. The sessions can be structured as follows:

• At the beginning of the session, give information in advance to the participant: where he/she is, with whom and what he/she is going to do.
• Breathe with awareness. The objective is to relax the person.
• Showing affection
• Name the parts of the body with which you are working.
• Take care of the participant's posture, ensuring that he/she feels comfortable and relaxed.

During the sessions it is essential to take into account the following aspects:

• Give the participant the opportunity to choose, according to their preferences.
• The right to use his or her time.
• Repeat an action as many times as he/she wants.
• Someone to supervise the session, whether or not taking an active role.
• Allow time for the participant to express him/herself and give his/her response.