Back in the Spring, you may have seen the headline in the New York Times, "Coronavirus Ended the Screen-Time Debate. Screens won." When I read that, my heart started racing. I was so upset because that has never been the debate. The debate has always been how do we help our kids have healthier screen time as well as plenty of time off screens. Not only did that headline ignore the real debate, but it also implied that parents should just throw up their arms and accept complete screen time saturation. That is absolutely the wrong message we want to get to parents.

Yes, with COVID, there has been a LOT of screen time — and that makes sense. Thank goodness our tech revolution has allowed some socializing to continue and school to still happen — (albeit significantly modified and suboptimal). Those are just some of the many positives that our tech revolution has made possible during this devastating pandemic. Yet, that said, there are still the many complexities of working to raise our kids to be tech-wise and screen balanced.

I am jazzed today to share with you the top 10 blog posts of this past year. I've continued to love getting emails from so many of you telling me how these have helped you, sharing with me your experiences and insights, and at times hearing your opposing ideas. All of it makes writing this blog that much more of a rich and rewarding experience.  

2020 was particularly exciting with the launch of the Screenagers Podcast

And we even just released one this week: Tips From A Therapist Of Teens With Problematic Tech Use. Listen in!

2020 has also seen the release of my new book, Parenting in the Screen Age, and with it, people organizing new types of book clubs, called Chapter Clubs. January 6th at 6 pm, I will be hosting an online Chapter Club event about parenting around video games (chapter 2), and here is information on that.

My heart is filled with gratitude as I thank all of you for continuing to be with me on this journey to help all young people live safe, meaningful, and enriching lives. My main Screenagers partner Lisa Tabb and everyone else on our Screenagers’ team, thanks you as well.

1. 3 Steps to Fewer Fights Over Screen Time
   The Nurtured Heart Approach 3-steps can make a big difference in the family dynamic. It helps by bringing attention to the positive and giving less energy to the negative. I explain how it works and break it down to make it easy to try.
2. Our Kids Need Us
3. Our kids' social media feeds are roiling with taxing and painful posts of yelling, riots, and death. It's more important than ever to figure out effective ways to be engaged in our kids' lives. Here are some ideas.
4. Anxiety — What Every Young Person Should Know
5. Anxious feelings are understandably very high right now in our youth, given COVID. This post has lots of ideas and resources to help your kids and teens with anxiety.
6. TikTok And the High of An Audience
7. I was with a teen who was jumping up and down, exclaiming she now had 10,000 followers and some 400,000 views on a video she posted on TikTok. What does this increased chance of quickly getting a massive number of followers and views mean for our youth?
8. Reasons Teens Now Report Higher Depression Rates
9. Why now are a higher percentage of tweens and teens reporting depression symptoms than in the past? Today I write about some of the reasons why we might be seeing this rise, and I hope you will discuss these ideas with kids and students in your lives.
10. Needing Attention And Crying For Help On Social Media
11. I explore ways to talk with your kids and teens about when and how to help and reach out to friends that are posting and sharing things online that indicate that something may be up. This skill is especially relevant now when so much of their social interaction is online.
12. Feeling Needed Is So Key
13. I write about ways that youth can safely help others via tech and tech-free during our world's intense COVID-19 crisis.
14. Online Rejection, How To Help
15. There are many ways our teens regularly experience rejection online. This post has ideas for ways to help them through those emotionally rough times.
16. 22 podcasts kids and teens are listening to right now
17. 22 podcast recommendations for kids and teens — and adults will like many of these too.
18. Digital Binging, Is it A Problem
19. What are the potential costs of loads of certain screen time activities on our kids' brain health and mood? What are ways to change tech time that might help them feel better — even while keeping the same total amount of screen time.

Click here if you are interested in hosting an ONLINE screening for your community.

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Click here for information about Dr. Ruston’s new  book, Parenting in the Screen Age

Subscribe to Dr. Ruston’s Screenagers Podcast.

December 28, 2020

As well as our weekly blog, we publish videos like this one every week on the Screenagers YouTube channel