5 Tips for Managing Screen Time Struggles With Children and Teens

The evidence is conclusive.

Too much screen time in kids and teens correlates with an uptick in anxiety, depression, hyperactivity, and aggressive behaviors. Per one study, the more TV time kids got early in life, the more likely they were to struggle with class participation and math. Social media is so connected to mental health challenges that the U.S. Surgeon General has issued an advisory about it and Australia has outright banned it for teens under 16.

On top of all of the mental and emotional challenges that can come with it, screen time is hard on young bodies. Looking down at a screen can hurt their neck and strain their eyes. Teens who get a lot of screen time also tend to get insufficient physical activity and struggle with excess weight and sleep problems.

As a parent, you can take steps to protect your family from all of these risks. We have a few suggestions to help you establish healthier habits around screen time.

#1: Encourage their non-screen-based hobbies

If you’re worried your child or teen spends too much time looking at a screen, help them find healthy alternatives. The right place to start depends on your child/teen’s current interests.

If you already know about something they enjoy, lean into it. That might mean creating a space in your house where they can practice their instrument or do their art, or offering to drive them to pick-up league games.

If you’re not sure about anything existing that you can support, it’s time to help your teen or child explore areas with potential. The experts at the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth have some tips your family can apply here.

#2: Find offline things to do together

Make non-screen time something you do as a family. Enjoying an activity together builds healthy family bonds. These can counterbalance a lot of the challenges that come with living in a digital age.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Family walks (particularly if you have a dog)
• Cooking dinner together or baking
• Hiking
• Going thrift shopping
• Playing tabletop or card games
• Doing a puzzle
• Gardening
• Family book club

Try different things until you find something that all of you like doing together.

#3: Communicate about healthy screen use

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) used to recommend a certain ceiling on screen time (one hour a day for kids 2–12, two hours for teens). In 2016, though, they did away with those hard and fast rules. Instead, the AAP “recommend[s] considering the quality of interactions with digital media and not just the quantity, or amount of time.”

Talk with your kids and teens about how they use their screens — and how they want to use them.

It might be helpful to come alongside them to get a better idea of what they’re consuming from their screens. Co-viewing a show they like or watching them play a favorite video game should give you clarity. Then, you have an easy opening to talk about what’s healthy to be engaging with on a regular basis (e.g., avoiding excess violence).

As you’re talking about healthy screen use, you might also explore a digital detox together.

#4: Decide on rules together

Everyone chafes at rules that don’t make sense to them. Kids and teens are no exception. So work on setting rules together.

You might ask:

• How much screen time feels fair on weekends? What about school days?
• How do you want me to remind you that you’re out of screen time?
• What should the consequences of going over be?
• Do we want to establish any windows as tech-free times?
• Do you want to have any ways to earn screen time?
• Does using social media ever make you feel sad, anxious, or less than?
• Do you think I should let you watch/play things above your age limit (e.g., watching PG-13 movies for preteens)? If so, why?

Establish the rules together, and find a way to keep them visible for all of you.

#5: Model healthy habits

Your kids and teens are watching you. That gives you the opportunity to showcase healthy habits. When your child comes up to talk to you, put your phone away so you can engage with them. Be mindful of how much they see you sitting and scrolling. You might even say things like, “My eyes feel tired so I’m going to take a break.”

If you need some support to reduce your own phone time, we have a few suggestions teed up for you.

 

For most parents, managing screen time is an ongoing project. It changes as your child matures. It can get increasingly difficult as they get their own device and more autonomy.

Whatever phase your family is in, you don’t have to navigate this alone. For support in figuring out how to set healthy rules or communicate guidelines, you can see a therapist yourself. If this is a real sticking point in your household, doing some family sessions with your child or teen can help, too.

To explore using therapy to help your family establish healthier screen engagement, contact us.