Why Must Parents Track Teens’ Cell Phones?

It is devastating to hear the stories about our generation being tethered to their devices and have become highly dependent on them. Young kids and teenagers are becoming self-centered, depressed, and suicidal. It explains that the balance is not justified yet.

Parents must keep track of their kids’ online activities to manage their digital time.

The day-to-day possibilities of utilizing the digital world have expanded. Although it has made our lives easier, we carry a love-hate relationship with the digital world. Like everything, we should use digital gadgets and platforms sensibly.

Should Parents Track Their Teen’s Phones?

The answer is yes: parents should track their teens’ phones. However, it would be more ethical if teens knew about the tracking activity. The purpose of monitoring teens’ phones is to ensure their security online and offline. That’s all.

Why Must Parents Track Teens’ Cell Phones?

Curiosity is a part of growing up. There are so many physical and hormonal changes going on inside children. When kids in their most sensitive teenage years go through a rough patch and feel overwhelmed, depressed, or lonely, they escape to the digital world.

Children suffering from anxiety and depression are more prone to the internet and digital dependency. Children who are deprived of emotional support from their family or friends or children with alcohol and drug addiction can turn to digital means of support. Introverted kids are also at higher risk of developing computer addiction.

The Short And Long-Term Effects:

There are always some effects of digital dependency.

1. Short Term:

Short-term side effects include;

1. Pending tasks
2. Ignorance to responsibilities
3. Changes in weight
4. Technostress

2. Long Term:

Long-term side effects include;

1. Backaches
2. Neck pains
3. Carpal tunnel syndrome
4. Vision issues
5. Addiction to gambling, E-shopping, and gaming
6. Lack of socializing to the point of becoming introverted

Classifications Of Digital Dependency Disorder:

Due to the unregulated digital time, young boys and girls display addictive behavior. There is a great deal of evidence to support this. Adults’ brains are fully developed, while young children are still developing. They are receptive to changes in connectivity. It can impede brain development, leading to digital dependency disorder. Other classifications include;

1. Internet and video game addiction
2. Compulsive digital use
3. Social media addiction
4. Mobile or other gadget addiction

5 Signs Of Digital Dependency Among Teenagers:

1. Feeling Anxious or Depressed:

Do you feel that your child has episodes of anxiety and depression after using their smartphone or the internet? It is an indicator of digital reliance. It triggers negative emotions in your child. The desire to be available online and stay updated with the latest trends and news can cause FOMO (fear of missing out) anxiety.

Consider app monitoring of your child’s devices and implement rules for their amount of use. When a child receives a notification from an app, they immediately want to grab their devices and check it. If they are not able to do so for some reason, they tend to get more anxious. Teenagers feel a part of them is missing without their mobiles, just like addiction to nicotine or cocaine.

2. Lack of Time Management:

The disruption of balance in life is often connected to addiction. Time waits for no one, and teenagers addicted to their digital world develop a lack of focus and miss the deadlines of their school work or home chores. They spend more time on cell phones and ignore productive work.

Phone tracking apps can help find how much time teens spend on their mobiles. The constant interruptions from digital networks can cost the child’s time management. You may think your child is doing some homework in their bedroom, and still, you are receiving complaints from the school regarding the missed assignments of your tween. It overburdens the child with numerous pending tasks.

3. Damaged Relationships:

In addition to time management disruption, the quality of time spent with family is greatly affected. Children may spend more time on their gadgets during family gatherings than enjoying family time. Parents should monitor teens’ web browsing activity to educate them that what they do is not fruitful.

Teenagers’ relationships with their friends are affected as they are busy watching their screens rather than paying attention to their fellows’ talking. Losing track of time, broken relationships, and inability to socialize are also signs of digital addiction.

Playing games is not harmful until they are abused. You may find your teen is always occupied. They have decreased tolerance, less interest in stepping outside, lie about the extent of use, and refuse to reduce or stop their screen time. Use the best parental control software to provide evidence to your teen on how much time they spend on gadgets.

4. Physical Pains:

Do you frequently hear complaints from your teenager regarding pains in their neck, shoulder, vision problems, etc.? If so, then know this is also a sign of digital dependency. Digital gadgets make your child more sedentary, spending most of their time on their mobile and computer or gaming consoles. It can put a strain on their back, neck, and eyes. If the issues persist and don’t go away, it may be a sign to ask your child to step back from their digital world.

Parental monitoring software can point out how much time of the day your teenager is spending on their screen.

Some characteristics of the person who spends a lot of time on digital gadgets are;

1. Backaches
2. Headaches
3. Weight changes
4. Sleep deprivation
5. Blurred vision
6. Carpal tunnel syndrome

5. The Annoying Guilt:

The guilt due to digital addiction is similar to the drug or smoking addiction. Addicts feel frustrated and annoyed due to excessive use. Your teenager may feel disappointed by themselves, and self-hate issues become apparent. After a short peek at gratification, your child feels they cannot take control of their lives.

Deep down inside, digital addict also feels that they should spend their time wisely instead of wasting it on pointless online surfing and following strangers. App monitoring can provide insight into how much time is wasted on certain apps.

Devastating Results of Digital Dependency:

Apart from insomnia, physical pains, dishonesty, weight changes, depression, and loneliness, brain damage is the most severe form of harm. Studies have shown the damage to the child’s brain includes;

1. Brain size shrinking
2. Loss of tissues in the frontal lobe, striatum, and insula

It causes the inability to plan or organize, hindering impulses for social acceptance and a lack of empathy and compassion towards others.

Plan of Action For Parents:

Recognition and acceptance of any problem is the first step towards betterment. Decreasing the tech time and emphasizing important basic things is vital. Parents can monitor their children’s web browsing and phone activities. Here is how parents can save kids from becoming phone addicts.

1. For children above six years of age, limit digital mediums. Ensure sleep quality, physical activities, and other healthy behaviors are not compromised.
2. Enforce leisure time and tech-free time at home. As well as digital-free zones at home
3. Communicate with your teenager. Start conversations and share thoughts about the online communities. Instill in them the moral, religious, and ethical views about respecting others, online and offline.
4. Use a parental control app like NexaSpy to save kids from online dangers.

Closing Thoughts:

While reading this article, you may wonder if your family also requires digital detox. When our children behave unusually, we think it’s just the growing age of puberty. However, the reasons could be far more lethal than we thought. Digital addiction is when you see your child mainly occupied and engaged in various digital activities. Their dependency on their digital world is growing inappropriately. It is high time to reset the balance of their online time. Parents need to monitor their teenagers’ web browsing activity regularly.