Multifunctional Consoling Room for Athletes

Media: 

Rhino + Enscape + Photoshop & Illustrator 

Many athletes are suffering from serious mental health issues rooted in their pressured and competitive life. According to McLean hospital, “a 2019 study found that about 35% of elite athletes have mental health concerns. The top issues reported by athletes included feelings of burnout, depression, and anxiety.” I myself are also facing some challenges in my sports life, and consultation with a mental health therapist is the major way of help we would seek. But for some people, this process of face-to-face talking could also be a pressure. So I started to think if I could create a space for mental consultation that makes the user feel easy and relaxed. 

There are two main goals in designing this consultation space. The first is to give the flexibility to the athlete that they can choose the level of exposure they prefer to the therapist or anyone playing the role as a listener. They might not want to expose their injured body, the body shape that is bringing anxiety to them, or anything they just are not feeling comfortable to share. In such a digital time, talking to someone face to face could be a big pressure for some people, and I hope that this space could bring them a relief. 

The second goal is to create a space that is multifunctional especially for the athletes. I hope that this is not a space where they have to sit tight and talk to someone while keeping their manners in mind all the time. I hope that they can feel at home in this space, and this space is not just for consultation, they can rest here, enjoying their me-time here, stretching or even do some training here. 

The first spatial strategy I explored here is the way that the consultation conversation is carried out. Instead of talking face to face, the therapist and the athlete could be separated into different spaces. The patient seeking help won’t feel the
And to accommodate the flexibility I am pursuing in this space, the “separation wall” will be punched with a series of holes, to which different sizes of cylinders will be inserted in. And with different combinations of the cantilevered arms, people
So when someone seeking help enters the room, they will see a wall with multiple operable windows that he/ she could decide which one to open later and notches to insert the “arms” that he/she will rest their body on later. When the patient decides w
Here is a visualization of how the consultation room would look like. The lighting design and the interior design will also be supporting the healing function of this room. Light and warm color will be applied in the wall paint and the fabric used in
As I mentioned in the two original goals of this project, I hope that this room can serve as other programs as well. So I mocked up four different settings with this design ideas here. It can just be a cool and quiet space to enjoy the me-time that a
Contrary to the first case, this space can also be a very vivid and energetic space with plants and sunlight. A lush green tone of the space guarantees the sense of nature here but never being too saturated to the users.
And this space can also be a social space for gathering. A clean but warm style of interior setting will make people feel welcoming and the canvas material wrapping the arms gives it a bit more sense of public space. All the operable panels can be op
And lastly but most importantly, this is a space for the athletes. So training and stretching should be able to happen here. Wood material on the wall and the floor will make it a perfect informal training space for the target users. And the arms can
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