It feels so good to be back writing my newsletter! Thanks to everyone who messaged me this summer. Let's get to this.

This is what I want to share this week.

A shocking 66 percent of parents believe parenting is harder today than it was 20 years ago. When asked why, 26% expressed it was due to technology and 22% said it was because of social media.

The thing is, isn’t technology supposed to be making life easier for us?

Many times we develop screen time contracts or set up the limited screen time monitor on the phone to manage our kid’s screen time use. I have done it myself.

Too much screen time, kids get irritated and have a hard time focusing. No screen time, they miss out on learning opportunities and practicing skills they will need for their technology driven future.

But what if the issue with ‘how technology, social media, and the internet affect our parenting’ has more to do with OUR use of screens and less with our kid’s screen time?

Are we allowing technology to interfere with our parenting?

What if our instagram page or our email is robbing us from meaningful interactions with our kids?

Our kids want to ask us tough questions but we are busy checking the last message we received in our whatsapp.

…And, there will always be an excuse to answer in the moment.

Kids see our device in our hands, give up asking us that one question,

and BAM! We have missed a crucial parenting opportunity.

But why does this matter?

It matters more than we think.

🧠 We are training our brains to get distracted.

We get distracted with our screens which makes it hard to refocus fully on a parenting situation. And suddenly we start missing out on opportunities to connect with our kids and make a meaningful impact on their development as parents.

Least we know it, our kids will grow up and will be doing the same.

🔌We get emotionally disconnected

In a study in the Journal of Development and Behavioral Pediatrics, parents stated that their emotional response was influenced by what they were reading on their mobile device. This resulted in more frequent negative reactions to their family members.

Have you noticed this before?

Are we letting technology and social media influence how we treat others?

💢Feeling pulled in many directions

We can acknowledge we don’t have to be available for our kids 100% of the time. There is life beyond parenting.

Though our mobile devices serve as a source of entertainment to disconnect and unwind, this may also give us a feeling of overwhelm.

We get pulled in many directions. We need to check the latest message our mother sent in whatsapp, or the grocery list our partner needs, or the last request from our boss in our email, or comment on the latest post on social media.

Technology has transformed the way we interact with everyone, even our kids. We have more interactions a day, which means we need to rethink how much time we will invest in each one of the interactions.

What will we decide to prioritize and invest in?

What can we do as parents to take control of our technology use?

1. Set family boundaries

Establish a screen free time and place at home. Some common times are breakfast or dinner time, while some places can be the bedroom or dinner table.

I leave the phone the first 15 minutes after my kids get back from school to have conversations with them.

Whatever works for you and your family.

2. Track your mobile use

Screen time management can also be set for adults. Tracking your screen time use can help you become aware of the times, frequency, and what you are spending that time on.

3. Assign a time for using a specific platform

We engage in social media or email daily. It's become part of most jobs and communities to build connections and communicate.

However, if you know reading your email might trigger you to respond negatively to your kids, check your email at specific times while you are home.

66% of us might feel that parenting is harder today, with one of the main causes being technology and social media. But are we making it more difficult for ourselves?

It's a matter of identifying tradeoffs and prioritizing. There will be moments when responding to that work email is important, or taking that call needs to happen.

But in the bigger scope of things, what does your screen time use look like?

Is technology getting in the way of your parenting?

Thank you for reading.

If you found this valuable, share it with a friend!

Reply with any thoughts, I love hearing from all of you!

Until next week,

Alexandra
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