Smartphone and Santa — How to Avoid Social Media Gorging This Christmas

Finding Your Right Mind — with Vanessa Potter

Christmas is nearly here! The tree is up, presents are hidden, ready to wrap and the kids are counting the hours until school is out. Yet, underneath the excitement I'm feeling a simmering fear of what endless free time and a lack of socialising is going to do to my children's tech habits. This year I have taken Christmas by its ' jingly antlers' and put some Tech Survival Tactics in place with the help of Dr Fintan Nagle, a cognitive scientist who studies adult and teen use of social media.
Lockdown wasn't great for us — my children were sucked into watching hours of YouTube, Netflix and endless TikTok scrolling. Reading went out of the window and tempers flared when I tried to prise them off iPads and phones. My family is not unique. Lots of parents suffered the same, resorting to pleading, fighting or imposing tech bans to get their kids to 'look up'. But, what effects has lockdown really had upon tech use? What does hours of mindless scrolling do to a teen's brain? Why is our attention hijacked SO easily and why do we feel powerless to resist? We'll answer these questions and many more in this must-listen episode!
Head to www.vanessapotter.com to get a FREE Tech Survival Guide. We can't stop you gorging on Quality Street this Christmas, but we might be able to help when it comes to social media.

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