FAMILY MENTAL WELLNESS
Screen Time SCRUTINY THE NO-GUILT GUIDE TO FINDING BALANCE AND IDENTIFYING ALTERNATIVES BY ERIN PAGE . PHOTOS PROVIDED.
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By the nature of our tech-heavy world, kids today have a lot more screen time than their parents did. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that, on average, kids ages 8 to 18 spend more than six hours on screens daily, not including school work. And the Journal of Behavioral Addictions reports that adolescents who spent more time on screens than their peers exhibit higher levels of depression and anxiety a few years later. How can parents effectively balance the need for screens with our families’ mental wellness? We spoke with Jae Jackson McConnell, senior program manager over the Peer Recovery Support Division and Behavioral Health and Wellness Division for the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services, for her advice as a professional and mom of two. ACHIEVING BALANCE Parents must temper the screen time debates and warnings that screens are entirely detrimental with the knowledge that times today are different than when we were growing up. McConnell’s two young sons are on the autism spectrum, and screens have been a helpful tool for them to learn their own way, at their own pace. “My kids are very visual
“For my own children, I notice a marked improvement in behavior when I cut down on screen time,” said McConnell. “When my kids are on screens too long, they’re not getting to experience things happening in comparison culture, social media can pose constant challenges to older kids’ mental health. In addition to proactively initiating conversations and limiting access to social media, McConnell notes it’s important for parents to acknowledge the increased hardships today’s kids nature or be social.” From bullying to the
MCCONNELL BALANCES HER BOYS' SCREEN TIME WITH OUTDOOR FUN AND SOCIAL ACTIVITIES.
face with the constant accessibility to the online world. “When you had problems happening at school, you could come home and get away from it,” said McConnell of when today’s parents were kids. “But now it’s constant — they can’t get away from it. For teens that can be especially difficult.” REDUCING KIDS’ SCREEN TIME For families seeking to reduce screen time, McConnell shares an effective 2-step process: First, parents should check our own habits. Our kids are watching, and mimicking, what we do in our daily lives, which means curtailing our own screen time will have positive benefits for our kids. McConnell’s boys, ages 3 and 5, call her out when she’s on her phone for extended periods of time. She tries to take in news and social media in small doses, staying on top of current events using credible, neutral sources and watching for the sense of overwhelm or overload that occurs when she’s consumed too much. Second, replace screen time with another activity. Especially for younger kids, McConnell says it’s not realistic to take screens away and expect them to come up with a replacement activity. For little ones, this may mean parents need to play a game with them or take them to the park. With older kids, parents may simply need to suggest several activities for them to choose from, like playing outside or reading a book.
learners, so trying to explain something to them can be a challenge, but if they can see it happening, it opens a whole new world,” said McConnell. “They have a hard time with pretend play. There are YouTube videos that teach kids how to use their imagination, so my kids watch other kids pretend play. They picked it up and can now do it on their own.” McConnell also acknowledges
that too much of anything, including screens, can be harmful.
SCREENS HAVE BEEN A HELPFUL LEARNING TOOL FOR MCCONNELL'S TWO BOYS.
12 METROFAMILYMAGAZINE.COM / JULY-AUGUST 2023
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