HOW TO SCREEN-SMART YOUR TEEN

Worried your teenager spends too much time glued to their screen? Take heart from wellbeing expert Nicola Morgan’s advice for young people – and pick up a few tips for yourself…

The internet has vastly changed our lives, but as well as huge benefits there are downsides. We all need to understand how this wonderful medium affects us so that it remains a tool and not a tyrant, and why looking at our screens is so tempting – even addictive.

It comes down to biology and how we survive and succeed. We’re programmed to be social, to make connections with other people. Humans need to live and work together, to get help from each other, sharing burdens and knowledge. We’re curious, too; drawn towards discovering and trying out new things. We like to learn but we’re also easily distracted and have a tendency to be anxious. The internet and social media give us opportunities to be all these things in bucket-loads.

But research suggests that technology addiction is easier to control and cure than issues with substances such as alcohol. We simply need to learn how to manage our social media and screen use and use it to our advantage.

FRIENDS & OVERSHARING

THE POSITIVES Meeting people can sometimes be difficult. Maybe you’re naturally shy or live in a rural area where there aren’t many people. Social media can help with making friends and keeping in contact with them. There’s also research suggesting that not having any access to screen time and social media can have a negative effect, particularly for young people. THE NEGATIVES If you spend too long online, you risk not making time for things that are important to health and wellbeing, such as exercise and face-to -face conversation. Or you won’t leave enough time for your work, which you end up rushing or not doing well. You may miss opportunities to stretch your mind with hobbies and new experiences. There is also the possibility that you lose control and become dependent on technology, finding it harder to stop. It’s also easy to overshare personal information and feel disinhibited.

TECH TIPS

Set yourself targets and do the things you should do before spending time on social media so that it is a reward.

Don’t share anything until you’ve had time to consider it. Think of posting online as similar to crossing the road: you wouldn’t do that without stopping to look both ways.

If you have been angrier or ruder than you intended, read your messages back to yourself the next day and remember the feeling when they make you cringe so you don’t do it next time.

Remind yourself that people can easily get the wrong impression and think of that as you post.

Don’t post anything you would mind being seen by your family. Check privacy settings on apps and devices. Don’t be on social media if you’re not comfortable with it. Lots of people stay away or use it carefully.

Don’t post images of or stories about people without their permission. Would you like it if they posted things about you that you find embarrassing?

HOW TO AVOID INFORMATION OVERLOAD

THE POSITIVES The internet allows us to quickly access pretty much every fact that has been recorded, which makes life easier in so many ways. We are better at skim-reading, grabbing key facts and reading quickly, which is a useful skill in this busy age. THE NEGATIVES Information overload can lead to tiredness and poor processing. Everything you read requires concentration and brain activity. When you process information, your brain cells use energy in the form of oxygen and glucose. So the more you take in, the more quickly you’re going to use up energy and become tired. There is also evidence that we are becoming less good at deep reading – not making the effort to understand difficult texts. TECH TIPS

If you’re feeling tired or less able to concentrate, take a ten-minute screen break.

Delete some information sources such as apps and switch off notifications where you can.

When you need to focus on a piece of work, close down other windows on your computer and put your phone on silent and out of sight.

Once a day give yourself time for focused reading, perhaps before bed, with devices off.

While reading be aware of where your mind is. If it keeps wandering, go for a short fast walk and drink water, then go back to the task.

While reading, imagine someone is going to ask you to explain to them what you have read.