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Montefiore in the News

October 23, 2020

Remote life can leave both kids and adults with screen fatigue and craving human connection.

As an adolescent medicine specialist at Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, I have some tips to help you practice digital wellness as a household

  1. Start the conversation.

As a family, watch a documentary like “Social Dilemma,” “Screenagers” or “LIKE.” Use it to discuss the benefits and pitfalls of screen time and social media. Or bring up relevant news items, such as the proposed TikTok ban, over dinner.

  1. Take stock of your use.
  • Assess how certain apps make you feel.
  • Eliminate unnecessary platforms that don’t bring you joy.
  • Consider how much time you are spending with your phone relative to other activities.
  • Remember: Parents modeling healthy relationships with their phones is the most influential part of family digital well-being

    Treating patients in the Bronx

Remote life can leave both kids and adults with screen fatigue and craving human connection.

As an adolescent medicine specialist at Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, I have some tips to help you practice digital wellness as a household →

A scene from “The Social Dilemma.”Netflix

  1. Start the conversation.

As a family, watch a documentary like “Social Dilemma,” “Screenagers” or “LIKE.” Use it to discuss the benefits and pitfalls of screen time and social media. Or bring up relevant news items, such as the proposed TikTok ban, over dinner.

  1. Take stock of your use.
  • Assess how certain apps make you feel.
  • Eliminate unnecessary platforms that don’t bring you joy.
  • Consider how much time you are spending with your phone relative to other activities.
  • Remember: Parents modeling healthy relationships with their phones is the most influential part of family digital well-being.
  1. Use your phone. Don’t let it use you.

Avoid device multi-tasking, especially while trying to learn or work from home. Jumping between screens and apps makes work take longer. Pro tip: Turn off notifications for all but the essential apps.

 

  1. Create device-free zones.
  • Eliminate phones from tables at mealtime and bedrooms overnight. (You might need to buy an alarm clock).
  • Try screen-free Saturday mornings or a daily “no-power” hour, and use that for family time instead.
  • Challenge each other to a one-day phone fast. The first person to lose does everyone’s laundry for a week.
  • 5. Make a family plan to moderate use.
  • iStock
  • With your kids, draft a family media plan that balances online and offline activity, outlines unsafe media use and establishes check-ins.
  • For more tips on family togetherness, read our guide on making the most of the family table.