Many parents did not grow up with smartphones. Still, it is our job to help teens navigate the new stressors and challenges that come with the ubiquitous use of smartphones.
They can also lead to negative comparisons among teens and affect sleep hygiene.“If you ever need to reach Amy, just text her. I think her phone is glued to her body.” I was told by the father of the 15-year-old girl who was referred to me for a worsening. As a psychologist, I am seeing more and more teens with serious mental health problems in which smartphone usage likely plays a role.
Amy’s situation is not unique, both with regard to her intimate smartphone connection and her depression. According to Pew Research Center , 95 percent of teens have access to a smartphone. This alone, of course, is not the problem. Smartphones can be a wonderful way to stay connected; keep aThe problem lies more in excessive use and the impact it is having on the mental health of our children and grandchildren.
Many teens now prefer texting over face-to-face encounters. The pandemic made this worse since in-person connection became more difficult. If your teen is already socially anxious, substituting digital media in this way promotes avoidance of the feared stimulus and promotes a worsening of that anxiety. Simply put, they are not learning the real-world skills they will need to connect successfully with others., they may be utilizing their phones almost like a digital security blanket.
It used to be that grounding an adolescent meant that she could not go to the mall or have a sleepover. More and more, it means taking her phone away. When Amy’s phone was taken away, she became despondent and felt cut off from friends and the outside world. Emotionally, we had to work to help her rely less on her phone and make more connections outside the digital world.
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