“What do you say to Grandpa for making us this big dinner?” we asked the kids, perched precariously on booster seats at the far end of the table. “Thank you!” they cheered enthusiastically. We parents looked at one another, pleased as punch with our children, especially because moments earlier my niece threw a fork and… Read More →
I was recently asked to try to go back to my own childhood and try to remember the things that I worried most about when I was young. Closing my eyes, it didn’t take me long to channel my inner child and generate a robust list of worries that ranged from, “my basement” to, “an… Read More →
Technology and teens. If you are anything like me, on any given day you vacillate wildly between, “Technology is amazing! What a time to be alive!” and, “Throw. It. Out. The. Window.” Such is parenting life in the digital age. News headlines exacerbate our ambivalence. Media reports convince us that social media is the key… Read More →
I had a summer screen time post all written and ready to post on the website. Then our family dog got very sick and eventually passed away earlier this week. In an instant work, emails, newsletters, and to-do lists flew off the priority list and grief took its place. Jasper, our thirteen year old husky… Read More →
New research helps us better understand the links between cell phones, sleep, and anxiety.
I received a phone call this past winter from a parent who had attended one of my workshops a few weeks before. “Dr. Walsh, I definitely feel like I know a lot more about what is going on inside my daughter’s brain after your workshop. But I have to say that it feels like my… Read More →
When it comes to digital devices, “proximity is destiny.” Of course in an ideal world we would all have the internal impulse control to make good choices about when to scroll and when to look up towards a family member or friend. Yet we know these internal skills are still developing in children’s growing brains… Read More →
Unfortunately, mass shootings, school shootings, racialized violence, and political violence are not uncommon. Even if they don’t happen in their communities, children and teens hear about them from friends, see images on social media, and read about them in the news. These events may cause children to fear that an event like this could happen… Read More →
“I feel like he is addicted to video games!” This worry is becoming more and more common among parents. For most, it just means that their child loves technology and has a difficult time unplugging. For some, it means that their child is choosing technology over most everything else and is struggling to cope. What’s… Read More →
My oldest son and his friends have been watching a lot of The Who Was? Show on Netflix. The series explores the lives of famous people from history. Before dinner recently he excitedly listed all the people he had learned about. After reciting the names he made this obvious but important observation: “That was a… Read More →
