approx. 3 min read
How much time do you spend looking at your smartphone? We all find ourselves glued to our phones from time to time. Sometimes it’s simply nice to take a break from the stresses of everyday life and give your brain a rest. There’s nothing wrong with allowing yourself a mental break, but problems begin when technology use interferes with family time, especially when it comes to spending time together with children.
At Anio, we want to help families communicate in a healthier way. No social media, no open internet access, and no distractions: the Anio 5 Kids’ Smartwatch offers a safer way for families to stay in touch.
How your screen habits can affect children
- A trigger for emotional problems: If you pay more attention to your phone than to your child, it will likely have a negative impact on their feelings. Screen addiction can make parents less aware of their children’s mental and emotional needs, leading them to try harder to get their parents’ attention. This behavior, in turn, can make parents angry with their child, creating a vicious cycle: the child’s needs are not met, so they act out to get attention, which gets them into trouble and makes them feel sad, causing them to act out again. It’s exhausting!
- Damaging self-esteem: Alarmingly, children as young as 4 report feeling sad or angry about their parents’ technology use and feeling less important than their parents’ phones. When repeated attempts to distract their parents from their phones fail, children may feel that they are not doing enough to get noticed, further damaging their self-esteem.
- Creating distance: When a phone comes between a parent and child, it creates a sense of indifference. Over time, children may become less willing to share things with their parents or guardians, whether it’s something that made them happy or a problem they are having at school. This is a dangerous situation, as children may not turn to you when they are having a difficult time, leading them to suffer in silence without support.
- Increased risk of injury: We have probably all looked at our phones while out in the park with our children. If you are not paying attention to your children while you are out and about, you may unfortunately fail to notice if they get into a situation where they could hurt themselves or others.
Tips for limiting screen time
The good news is that all of this can be reversed and improved with a few changes!
- Set specific times to check your notifications
- Make it a rule not to use phones at the dinner table
- Give your child your full attention when they are talking to you
- Avoid checking work emails after hours
- Try not to look at your phone for at least an hour before bedtime
- Spend a set amount of time every day with your children without any screens
When we realize that we are prioritizing our phones over our children, we can start to undo the damage we are doing not only to our children but also to ourselves!
So, have we caught your interest? Then head straight over to our shop, so you too can get your child ready for the digital world in an age-appropriate way and without sensory overload!
Or do you have questions? Then simply visit here
Your Anio Team!
