Dennis Gaviola

SM Mall of Asia compound in Pasay City. Gigie Cruz, ABS-CBN News

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Jervis Manahan

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA — The DSWD and SM Supermalls opened the first-ever &#x27;sensory lab&#x27; in the country, designed as a calming corner for people with heightened sensitivities such as those on the autism spectrum.</p><p>The lab is a facility that features low lighting and comfortable couches and amenities that may be used to pacify people who may have sensory overload inside malls.</p><p>It is the first of its kind in the country, which is envisioned to make malls more inclusive to people with disabilities, anxiety disorders, and the like.</p><p>&quot;Alam natin na kapag pumunta sila sa public spaces, na eencounter nila yung sensory overload, minsan nagkakaroon ng triggers na hindi nila gusto, and it manifests in different ways,&quot; said Sec. Rex Gatchalian of the DSWD.</p><p>&quot;Itong kauna-unahan na SM Sensory Lab ay solusyon sa ganong mga pagkakataon,&quot; Gatchalian said.</p><p>The “Sensory Lab” is accessible for free, as long as the person with heightened sensitivities is accompanied by at least one guardian.</p><p>The DSWD chief said this is one small step towards making public spaces more inclusive for people with special needs.</p><p>Gatchalian said he is hoping this will be replicated not just in malls but also in other places such as bus terminals and airports.</p><p>He noted that there are families with members on the autism spectrum opting not to go outside the house for fears of anxiety attacks and sensory overloads.</p><p>&quot;Now, hindi na ma-e-alienate yung nga children or yung people with special needs lalo na yung mga nasa autism spectrum lalo na kapag pumunta na sa mga mall,&quot; Gatchalian said.</p><p>Social workers will be on duty inside the sensory lab during its operating hours. Access to the facility is free.</p><p>&quot;We also have to make sure that we follow the correct guidelines in our fully welcoming corner,&quot; said Junias Eusebio, SM Vice President for Mall Operations.</p><p>Eusebio said they met with the Autism Society of the Philippines to ensure the facility is sensory-friendly.</p><div><br/></div><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=2013150537688981543&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2026-01-19T08%3A48%3A44.498754%3A839710e9-3bba-4be2-bb9e-68932bd1b938%26action%3Dedit&amp;sessionId=8c7a0df979216c6e655f395eea865f969a3d091d&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px" style="position:static;visibility:visible;width:503px;height:1145px;display:block;flex-grow:1" data-tweet-id="2013150537688981543"></iframe></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8"></script>

<p>The DSWD and SM Supermalls opened the first-ever 'sensory lab' in the country, designed as a calming corner for people with heightened sensitivities, such as those on the autism spectrum.</p>

The DSWD and SM Supermalls opened the first-ever 'sensory lab' in the country, designed as a calming corner for people with heightened sensitivities, such as those on the autism spectrum.

SM Supermalls, DSWD open first 'sensory lab' for people on the autism spectrum, others with heightened sensitivities

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SM Supermalls, DSWD open first 'sensory lab' for people on the autism spectrum, others with heightened sensitivities

Jervis Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jan 19, 2026 06:56 PM PHT

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SM Supermalls

Sensory Lab

DSWD

heightened sensitivities

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