Digital Detox for Kids (& Parents)

 

Many parents struggle with managing their kids’ time on their phones and other devices. As a parent myself, I’ve found that it’s often hard to practice what I preach to my own kids around their digital use. For me, the distractions of email, text messages and Instagram are often too hard to resist. I recommend having a consistent time you turn phones off every night and take them out of kids’ (and your) rooms as part of healthy daily habits. But, that is just a piece of the puzzle. What about the other 16+ hours of the day you are not sleeping?

One of the biggest challenges of focusing on homework, work and other projects are the constant distractions of texting, Snapchat, Instagram, and games. This is where the app flipd comes in. Flipd bills itself as a digital wellness company that nudges you to spend time off your phone. Their tagline is “Be present, stay focused, and connect to what matters with Flipd.”

Flipd has various options (as they say, different “levels” of focus) and timers you can set on a regular basis to schedule regular downtime.  The app lets you keep your phone, but stay disconnected so you can focus without distraction. Wired featured a great article on Flipd last month that goes into way more detail. “Calling attention to an unwanted habit is just the first step. Fixing it often depends on understanding how the habit works—the cue that triggers your compulsion and your state of mind when you succumb to it.” 

There is also the option of using the new downtime feature on the apple phones. It is similar, but lets you still get notifications and use apps. Have you tried it?

Give Flipd a try and let us know what you think, we can compare Flipd stats. I’m still working on my “light lock” mode, baby steps to mindfulness…