Are you wondering how to limit screen time for teens? You barely talk to your teenage son or daughter these days, and it’s not just because they’re going through the typical moodiness of adolescence. It’s because they can’t put their phone or tablet down long enough to hold a regular conversation. What can you do?
Learn How to Limit Screen Time for Teens
It’s not just television screen time parents have to monitor these days. Smartphones and other devices are sometimes viewed as necessities instead of wants. Too much screen time can lead to issues like avoiding responsibilities (like homework) and even depression.
Too many parents and their kids communicate mainly via text instead of sitting down and talking around the dinner table. If you’re worried that screen time is negatively impacting your child, you can take steps to limit it, such as:
- Establish rules, and stick to them, whether it’s no phones at dinner or a cutoff time every day
- Have screen-free days, including the whole family (you, too!)
- Have fun without screen time, such as board games or outdoor activities
- Use parental controls and monitoring apps
- Keep televisions and game consoles out of their bedrooms
- Discourage multitasking, which decreases focus and concentration
Finally, set an example. It can be hard to set limits on your child’s screen time if you can’t go five minutes without checking your own phone.
When you actively engage with your kids, the relationship between you can grow stronger.
When Electronics Become an Addiction
Without an intervention for electronic addiction, your teen’s grades may fall and they may gain excess weight due to a lack of physical activity.
Anything that interferes with your child’s daily life signals a problem. Social media addiction presents issues that people didn’t have 30 years ago. But constantly checking Instagram and Snapchat can have negative effects on people of all ages. Teens can be especially vulnerable.
Self-esteem and confidence can plummet when other people’s lives look happier, more glamorous or cooler than theirs. Adolescents often don’t think about how staged or filtered those perfect images are. Comparing themselves against pictures that aren’t even real can lead to mental health disorders, such as depression and anxiety.
Treatment for Teens, Help for Families
Venture Academy offers a residential behaviour treatment program at three locations throughout Canada. We provide help for teens who are having trouble at school or at home, whether it’s behaviour or substance abuse issues.
Our services include:
- Internet addiction treatment
- 30 day assessment and intervention
- Drug and alcohol treatment
- School programs and education
- Behavioural treatment
With our help, you’ll learn how to limit screen time for teens as well as repair your relationship with your child. Give the caring team at Venture Academy a call today at *DM_DirectNumber format=period orig=(855) 281-5813*. We’ll help your son or daughter get back on the right track to a brighter future.
