Our Kids Are Paying the Price for a Phone-Based Childhood

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About this week’s episode

Smartphones and social media have fundamentally reshaped childhood, creating an anxious generation struggling with skyrocketing rates of mental illness and disconnection. Through Jonathan Haidt's powerful book "The Anxious Generation," we explore how this technology impacts developing minds and what parents can do to protect their children's mental health.
• The significant correlation between smartphone adoption (2010-2015) and declining teen mental health
• Why teen girls are particularly vulnerable to social media's negative effects
• How smartphones disrupt four foundations of healthy development: independence, social interaction, sleep, and focused attention
• Personal struggles with setting phone boundaries for our own children
• The challenge of being the parent who restricts phone/social media access when "everyone else has it"
• School-based solutions like phone pouches and technology-free zones
• The importance of modelling healthy technology use as parents
• Strategies for developing media competency in children
If you're a parent, teacher, therapist or just someone who's ever caught themselves doom-scrolling at 2 am, this episode offers insights into building a healthier relationship with technology.

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