July 31, 2025
Imagine a space just for you to unwind: You walk in and are surrounded by the sound of rain falling and dim lighting, you smell lavender, see relaxing art pieces, and walk over to a yoga mat with a warm cup of tea. Welcome to the Serenity Room by Thrivology.
What Is the Serenity Room?
The Serenity Room is a research-backed, sensory experience for youth-supporting professionals to explore, relax, and find their inner serenity. The Serenity Room draws on the research and sensory elements of the Serenity Kit, a thoughtfully curated and research-backed collection of sensory objects designed for youth-supporting professionals to promote self-care, healing, and a sense of safety in the workplace.
Both the Serenity Room and Serenity Kit are brought to you by Thrivology, our research-to-practice center that works to expand the delivery of trauma-informed, healing-centered practices in adolescent sexual and reproductive health programming and care. We translate research into practical resources that youth-supporting professionals can use in the real world.
The Serenity Room is designed for youth-supporting professionals to nurture their well-being, so they are better prepared to foster authentic, trusting, healing-centered, and trauma-informed connections with young people.
The Serenity Room is designed for youth-supporting professionals to nurture their well-being, so they are better prepared to foster authentic, trusting, healing-centered, and trauma-informed connections with young people. Youth-supporting professionals dedicate a lot of time and energy to caring for others. As a result, they often carry the heavy burden of the trauma they encounter in their work, along with the weight of their own lived experiences. Amidst busy schedules and demanding responsibilities, it can be hard to prioritize healing. Compounding this, many workplaces also lack adequate support and resources for nurturing your emotional well-being, which can impede your ability to effectively provide care.
The Office of Population Affairs (OPA) invited Thrivology to pilot the Serenity Room at the OPA Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Grantee Conference in July 2024. The immersive Serenity Room proved successful, offering a meaningful impact on youth-supporting professionals. This success inspired us to launch the Serenity Room at the Healthy Teen Network in November 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona.
A Walk Through the Co-Creation Process
The Thrivology team envisioned the Serenity Room as an immersive adaptation of the Serenity Kit, focusing on creating a space that engaged all five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. We designed a layout featuring various stations where participants could explore sensory experiences. Elements were also included to make the space feel more serene, including electric flameless candles and sun lamps.
We were intentional with the items we chose and made sure each sensory item would serve its purpose, and that the space would be accessible for various bodies.
We were intentional with the items we chose and made sure each sensory item would serve its purpose, and that the space would be accessible for various bodies. For instance, we wanted to use yoga balls but worried about them rolling over and not being accessible for different bodies and needs. Instead, we purchased stability ball bases to ensure that the yoga balls were safe and easy to use.
With our pilot launch, we learned we needed a larger space to accommodate everyone who would experience the Serenity Room at our grand opening in Phoenix. We also ensured the space had large windows to allow folks to see the views of Phoenix and connect with nature. Anticipating a large draw, we also ordered more yoga mats and balls to fill up the space for folks to use however they desired.
If you are interested in developing Serenity Room yourself, we encourage you to think of ways you can replicate this process and create a more serene workspace by adjusting lighting, using nature sounds, setting up a yoga ball, etc.
The Long-Awaited Set-Up
After many deliveries, our items finally made it to the Healthy Teen Network conference location. When they arrived, we unpacked them so we could prepare the room for use by conference attendees. After about an hour, the Serenity Room was transformed into a calming and peaceful space and was ready for its official launch, and we welcomed our first youth-supporting professionals.
The Launch of the Serenity Room
As we welcomed folks into the space, we invited them to read the pamphlet to guide them through the space and help them understand the purpose of each sensory item. Many folks took a seat at the tables and made use of the items in different ways. Some youth-supporting professionals walked around, sat on the yoga balls, stretched, or meditated on the yoga mats.
It was fulfilling to see how many people appreciated the space and were inspired by the Serenity Kit and Serenity Room and how they could integrate it into their own workspace.
Many folks were interested in learning how to create a Serenity Room in their own workplace or about sharing with other organizations and colleagues. Throughout the pilot and official launch, we received overwhelming positive and enthusiastic feedback and support. We heard comments like, “This is so dope,” and several attendees returned to relax in the Serenity Room. At the TPP Conference, about 120 conference attendees visited the Serenity Room, and at the Healthy Teen Network conference, about 100 attendees visited.
If you’re interested in creating your own Serenity Room for your workspace, professional event, or a future conference, please contact us! We hope the Serenity Room will inspire you to create a space for your colleagues to decompress, destress, and relax.
Young People Supporting the Serenity Room
During the #HealthyTeen24 Conference, we invited Thrivology Youth Leaders to participate in the conference, and they supported the set-up and maintenance of the Serenity Room as well as creating social media content to promote both the Serenity Kit and Serenity Room. This was an exciting opportunity because the Thrivology Youth Leaders are enthusiastic about creating social media content for Healthy Teen Network and adding it to their work portfolios. We invite you to think about how you can also ethically integrate young people into your projects and uplift their voices and skills. Check out this blog post about collaborating with young people!
Create Your Own
Want to bring a Serenity Room to your next event or conference? Our step-by-step guide walks you through the process of creating your own Serenity Room, from the materials you’ll need to templates you can use.
While you’re at it, make sure to check out our full Serenity Collection, including the Serenity Kit and Serenity Moments! You can also build your own Serenity Kit using our DIY guide!
PHOTO BY: MAX VAN DEN OETELAAR
This project is supported by the Office of Population Affairs (OPA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award (1 PHEPA000006-03) totaling $1,063,776.35 with 100 percent funded by OPA/OASH/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by OPA/OASH/HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit opa.hhs.gov.
