5 digital detox tips for your teenager

It’s important to stay connected with the rest of the world via digital media. For students, screen time overdose is creating serious physical and mental health issues. A digital detox is an important opportunity for teens and adults to disconnect from smart devices and begin to connect more with one other. Here are some quick tips on how to do it:  

Be the role model 
We need two hands to clap. So, if you want your teen to successfully follow a digital detox schedule, family members will have to set the example, led by the parents.  

Take breaks from smartphones 
How about dinner time with no phones? What about an evening every week free from phone, tab, laptop and TV? Start setting up these ‘digital holidays’ till they become enjoyable and your teen starts looking forward to these ‘quality time’ breaks.  

Replace screen with nature  
Switch off the lights and have a family story time session by the window or on the balcony. Take your teenager to the terrace with you for morning yoga. Simply walk around the campus. No need for digital devices, and perfectly safe activities linking you with nature.  

Bring in the cool factor  
Teens are attracted towards opinions and attitudes that seem ‘cool’. Taking time off for a digital detox is absolutely cool. Encourage them to announce ‘digital down time’ to their friends before they switch off. It will give them an aura of power by establishing that they are in control of social media, and not the other way round.  

Set the rules and be strict  
Setting digital detox time frames and sticking to them is very important. Use this as an eye-opener for your teenager. He or she can still lead a normal life without looking at notifications every minute. Books can be read, not just browsed. Once the kids cut down dependency on their devices, they will develop a new perspective of technology, which would benefit them for a lifetime.