The moment: you are going into an access conversation.
A catalogue rather than an argument, made to be carried in to a manager, to HR, or to anyone adjusting a shared space. The five external senses on the face; the three internal ones — proprioception, vestibular, interoception — on the reverse, where they get the room. Senses without folk names get argued down as preferences, so they are named. Adapted from the Sensory Access at Work Why Sheet.
Side A of B
Sensory Access
at Work
Most workplaces are built for one narrow way of sensing, moving and communicating, and anything outside it gets called a problem. Input stacks faster than it can clear — and that load gets read as fragility rather than as design failure.
Access is created,
not granted.
the environment is designed · so it can be redesigned
- Dim or kill the overheads; task lighting and daylight instead.
- Replace or filter flickering fluorescents.
- Sunglasses, caps and screen dimming are equipment, not accessories.
- Quiet zones and low-stimulation rooms that actually exist.
- Noise-cancelling headphones and ear protection as normal kit.
- Cut background noise: HVAC, machinery, open-plan chatter.
- No scented cleaners, air fresheners or aerosols in shared areas.
- Ask people not to wear strong perfume or cologne.
- Warn before painting, deep cleaning, or anything with fumes.
- No shared meals or team lunches as a condition of taking part.
- Safe foods and familiar brands, without comment or pressure.
- A private, low-stimulation place to eat.
- Ask before contact. Don’t assume handshakes.
- Sensory-friendly clothing over rigid dress codes; fidgets and weighted lap pads.
- Thermal sensitivity is common — layers, a personal fan, some say over the thermostat.
- You were taught five senses. There are at least eight.
- The other three have no folk names, so needs that come from them get argued down as preferences.
stimpunks.org/why/sensory-access-at-work
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reverse
Side B of B
- Allow movement: standing, walking, rocking, pacing, a sit-stand desk.
- Walking meetings and movement breaks.
- Unusual posture is not inattention and not disrespect.
- Stable, supportive seating, and freedom to change position.
- No high stools or unstable chairs.
- Warning about anything that moves, spins or shifts underfoot.
- Build breaks in. Don’t rely on people noticing hunger, thirst or fatigue on time.
- Normalise stepping away to eat, drink, or rest.
- Ask directly rather than waiting to be told. Answering may itself be hard.
- Communication — written and asynchronous as normal and respected; processing time; AAC and text over voice.
- Attention — protect deep-work time. Monotropic attention runs single and deep, and resents being fragmented.
- Predictability — agendas and questions in advance, realistic notice of change.
- Meetings — materials ahead, cameras optional, written contributions counted.
- Recovery — rest and pacing are part of sustainable work. Sensory load plus masking pressure compounds into burnout.
Bring it to a manager, to HR, or to an access conversation as a starting point. Pick the entries that fit you — nobody needs every item. It is a menu, not a test.
- not a diagnosis, and not a medical form
- not a fixed checklist every person must match
- not a claim that difference is deficit
- not a demand to “just try harder” once the environment has been named
Your nervous system is real, and the environment is designed. This is access as infrastructure, not an afterthought.
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Foundation
One sheet · print double-sided · bring it to the conversation · share freely