Tough Topic: Is Anyone Else Dealing With Kid’s Internet Addiction?

[riser4]

When I was a kid I got sent to stack firewood whenever I was out of hand or my parents thought I was "bored". And there was no screen time in my house. My parents would not own a TV, and that belief was reinforced when Nixon wanted to put boxes on them to monitor what was being watched. My parents would be horrified at today's technology if they were still alive. "Hey wiretap, what time it?" I read a lot of books as a kid, usually in a hiding spot. And listened to a lot of radio.

[Ottime]

Well, with SIP school is primarily on the screen. As is any sort of connection with his friends. My kid normally only gets the screen for drives to skiing or occasionally on the weekend. So he is up about 1000%

He also reads for hours a day. But those screens are powerful.

[Cono Este]

I gave up. I only get my kids a few times a week, can’t spend it arguing with them.

My brother is literally out on the skids now after riding his kids too hard about their iPhones etc. wife obviously didn’t back him up. Divorce pending.


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[char_]

So for those of you struggling with this was there a turning point looking back where you would have made different choices about screens or the type of screens or type of media etc.

Appreciate the insight here and agree, it's a little terrifying.

[TahoeJ]

So for those of you struggling with this was there a turning point looking back where you would have made different choices about screens or the type of screens or type of media etc.

Appreciate the insight here and agree, it's a little terrifying.

Covid fucked everything up. Beyond that, not really. Slippery slope.

[hikesalot]

Covid fucked everything up. Beyond that, not really. Slippery slope.

This. My boys only communicate with their friends while gaming. They used to text more, but what’s there to talk about? They haven’t seen any of them in months, no one has anything to talk about cause there’s no school, no sports/activities, no getting together. And mine get borderline depressed if they don’t game for a little bit so they can chat with friends. So we’re trying to be pretty loose in that regard. If it wasn’t covid, this wouldn’t be nearly as bad at our house.

[Danno]

We struggle sometimes with our 9 year old, and see the very real effects of screen addiction. But we are pretty good at setting limits and we're flat out lucky too, because I know we're not doing anything much different than many of you describing much worse behavior.

Only advice I have is be firm when setting limits, and be prepared to escalate consequences. And don't back down. They're masters at playing on our weaknesses.

[phatty]

My advice is to delay giving them their own devices for as long as you can. Unfortunately lots of schools use smart phones starting in middle school. We tried to hold off until high school but it is getting tougher. We also do not allow phones/screens in the bedroom. All screen use needs to be out in the open where anyone can see what's going on. That has helped. My kids are doing OK, but my older teens are on their phones an awful lot.