News Reel

Can teens get addicted to Fortnite? Fortnite is an online video game, released in 2017 by Epic Games, that has multiple playing modes. The most popular mode is the Fortnite Battle Royale, a game where up to 100 players battle to the death. After jumping out of a plane onto an island, a Fortnite player fights against 99 other players. The gruesome mission is to kill everyone until one winner remains. Although the cartoon-style gameplay is not realistic, the game’s violent nature is apparent. Newport Academy recently published this article to discuss the ramifications of Fortnite and it's effects on youth today. Fortnite Success and Video Game Addiction  More than 125 million players have participated in Fortnite Battle Royale. Since players can improve their weaponry by buying upgrades, Fortnite’s success has led to a dual economic [...]

Do you find yourself arguing with your teens over screen time? The folks over at Screenagers recently published these three tips to help reduce conflict around screen time and make life with teens a little more peaceful. How to Optimize Parenting I find this statistic staggering: thirty percent of adults and the same percentage of youth report that they argue daily about screen time at home. That is millions of kids, teens, and parents fighting every single day about screen issues and many millions more who fight often, though not daily. I have some suggestions about how to put more joy into parenting given all the new stressors that have come with today’s tech revolution. 1.     Have technology do some of the parenting work for you. Rather than constantly repeating, “Time to shut it off,” [...]

Everyone is on social media so it can't be that damaging...right? Several organizations, however are concerned about long term mental health ramifications. The NHS even released the following article about the possible damages and what they feel needs to be done on the part of Facebook and Instagram to help compensate. Facebook and Instagram should be forced to fund treatment of mental health problems because of the damage caused by social media, the head of the NHS has suggested. Simon Stevens said the Government should consider introducing a “mental health levy” to fund NHS treatment of problems fueled by such websites. It follows concern that levels of anxiety, distress and depression among children and teenagers are reaching epidemic levels, with one in five teenage girls self-harming. Mr. Stevens told a global summit that there was [...]

Marijuana use is a hot-button issue right now across the country. Some argue that the long term effects are minimal and are outweighed by the benefits. However, many medical professionals are not comfortable with it's distribution to the general public without strict regulations, particularly where youth could potentially have access to it. In "Adverse Health Effects of Marijuana Use" featured in the New England Journal of Medicine, they delve more deeply into the short and long term effects. The graphic below summarizes the findings. If you, or a loved one is struggling with marijuana addiction call Tamara Ancona, MA, LPC at (678) 297-0708 for an evaluation, and to discuss the best treatment options available.

Is there a product to help combine screen time management as well as help parents manage kids' devices? It just so happens that there is! TechDen has created the first ever product that combines an app that parents use to manage screen time with a physical home that charges and stores kids’ phones and tablets. The Den takes an “out of sight, out of mind” approach to teaching kids healthy habits around device use, promoting a positive balance with technology and creating more family time. We’re about creating healthy habits for device use by teaching and empowering kids to put their screens in the Den. We want screens out of kids hands and sight, and have them outside playing! The mere ability to see their device simply triggers the desire to use it. Out of [...]