My child is addicted to technology: what should I do?

Screen addiction and its consequence

Pierla Salazar
5 min read

Technology addiction is that altered, continuous, persistent and harmful interaction that people have with screens of different branches, be it a television, a computer, a telephone or a video game.

There are studies that show that technological addiction is like eating a lot of sugar, in large quantities, which makes us anxious and keeps us tied to the screen, causing the burning of neurons, which means that it can be compared to the consumption of substances addictive with narcotics.

My child is addicted to technology: what should I do? – Mothers And Babies

A person addicted to screens can become dangerous, distant from a social environment and in some cases withdrawn and violent.

The inappropriate and excessive use of these products can cause great internal and external problems in the person who consumes them.

Not only are there adults addicted to the internet, computers, telephones and video games, today there are many children who become dependent on this entire technological system in order to survive, as well as they need food, they also need a tablet to calm their anxiety.

This is a serious problem for our society, because we would be forming more introverted and asocial individuals who manifest violence when you take them out of their comfort zone.

Causes of technology addiction

There is no exact cause that defines where internet addiction comes from, but there are some factors that may determine this problem.

There are causes or factors that produce addiction to the internet or to technological screens, in the first place it would be biological, people who are prone to have addictions of another nature, can easily be addicted to screens.

People with some imbalance, emotional, behavioral, mental, people with low self-esteem.

Another cause may be an individual factor, of the person himself, when the person is shy or has socialization problems, they may be easy prey for internet addiction.

My child is addicted to technology: what should I do? – Mothers And Babies

Also, when there is no daily routine of productive activities, or they are sedentary people, they remain at leisure and that same fuels addiction to technology.

Damages produced by technology

The first damage that the addiction of screens produces in the person is a social isolation, for a technology addict his world is only the screen that is in front of him.

Many addicted people even neglect their personal appearance, cleanliness, relationships with their families, work, their communication with the environment that surrounds them.

Disappearance of their reality, for a screen addict, their real world ceases to exist and begins to live in an unreal fantasy, from which it is difficult to get rid or get out, because an addict is an addict, be it to screens, to drugs or to any addiction.

Productivity and notion of time are lost, a person trapped in the technology networks loses time, hours days months, and time is a non-renewable resource.

This addiction generates violence, generates stress and anxiety, comes a mental and physical imbalance that is very difficult to handle, there are reports that show people addicted to technology with mental problems gestated by this action.

You lose healthy routines and productivity, food, sports, care, hygiene, finances and work, you are more prone to weaken the immune system and this ends up affecting multiple physical diseases.

People most at risk of being addicted to technology

First we find the men.

The man is very visual and anything allusive to a television, telephone or screen will catch his eye completely. Many men today are addicts and consumers of the internet, video games, pornography, among others.

Another very weak and vulnerable population is children, who through colors are attracted to screens and these come to take the place of toys.

While a child plays playfully with artifacts such as legos or others, there is a process of multiplication of neurons by the process of imagination, while, if he is playing on a screen, there is a process of burning of neurons due to addiction and consumption.

My child is addicted to technology: what should I do? – Mothers And Babies

Adolescents, through social networks, are the third most exposed person to be addicted to technology, through large communication networks and video games there are millions of young people who live trapped behind the screens.

People with difficulty relating to socialization problems, or with some physical disability resort to screens to be who they really are.

Pantillism and its addiction

Pantillism is an excessive obsession to be in front of a screen, which does not bring any type of benefit but negative consequences in different areas of the individual, physical, emotional, behavioral, mental and social.

This problem has increased during the pandemic and there are many adults, young people and children who do not find a way out of this addiction.

Between the leisure time that the pandemic has left us, the lack of routine, the confinement, and the little social interaction, a great monster called pantillismo has been generated.

Television, internet, computers, telephones, video games and many audiovisual tools are involved in the pantillismo that are not bad, but if they control us we will be in trouble, in trouble, because they will become a difficult hole to get out of.

My child is addicted to technology: what should I do? – Mothers And Babies

How to overcome this disease?

First, get rid of what binds you, in this case the screens, it is necessary to do a technological detox.

Establish daily routines that keep you productive and busy. Wake up early, exercise, meditate, read a book, start looking for jobs or daily tasks in which technology is not involved.

You can make a retreat of several days to a place where there are no connections, this will help you add value to real life.

Encourage outdoor activities that make you go out of closed places and want to make you relapse into the addiction to the screen. Find a sport or trade where you don't need a television, a screen, or a telephone.

Try to seek help, socialize and surround yourself with real people, strike up conversations.

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