With the young becoming quickly addicted to digital technology and social media, parents need to be aware and prepared for disciplining and guiding their children in the use of the internet.

Whether we like it or not, you and I are pioneers in this brave new world of parenting in cyberspace. Answering questions our parents never had to deal with, like: is my child too young to have a Twitter account? When should I buy my kid his first iPad? And how much computer time is too much?

Recently the youngest-known iPad addict, a 4-year-old girl from the UK, started psychiatric treatment to help her overcome her addiction.

Also, now there’s a condition called FOMO — described in the Urban Dictionary as ‘Fear of Missing Out.’ It’s got us all Facebooking, Tweeting and Instagramming within an inch of our lives. All for the sake of ‘staying in touch.’

So how do you keep your virtual life from infringing on your real life? And as a parent, how do you ensure your kids have a healthy break from technology when it seems like that would require minor surgery? Maybe it’s time for a Digital Detox.

5 Tips for avoiding Technology Addiction:

1. Where possible, keep computers in the lounge room or other public areas, so you can keep an eye on what’s going on ‘online.’
2. Keep mealtimes sacred — i.e. technology-free. Turn off the television, put phones on silent and enjoy some good old-fashioned conversation.
3. Enforce daily outdoor activity. Even if it’s walking the dog around the block. You’ll all feel better for it.
4. Do a quick sum in your head of how much ‘face-to-face’ conversation you’ve had with your kids today and make sure you add 5 more minutes tomorrow.
5. One Saturday, just for the fun of it, have a ‘technology-free’ day and stop to smell the roses. That’s how Saturdays used to be back in the old days, before Twitter.

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Originally published at Mum Daily. Photo by Julia M Cameron from Pexels.