Advice from experts to keep your baby busy without screens

Their mental and physical health suffers greatly when they use their phones excessively, whether they are playing games or browsing social media. Prakriti Poddar, global head of mental health and wellbeing for the holistic wellbeing app Roundglass Living, gave parents specific advice on how to handle this circumstance.

Prakriti suggested these ideas. Create dopamine-boosting offline habits and thrilling, unpredictable experiences that make real life equally engaging instead of outlawing screens. Allow children to create their own real-world “quests,” for instance, where they can receive points and prizes for imaginative, movement-based educational activities. The most intense moment and its conclusion are used by the brain to recall experiences. To help children begin to associate offline time with excitement rather than deprivation, end it on a positive note. It’s acceptable for kids to get bored occasionally. A child’s imagination, curiosity, and ability to control their expectations can all be stimulated by boredom, which is a normal and healthy emotion. Allow them to sit with it. Use a slow transition instead of yanking the screen away, similar to how fitness apps keep users interested. For example, “Stop right now!” or “Select your stopping point: two minutes or five?” This minor choice lessens resistance by giving children a sense of control. Parents should adopt mindful techniques like Prakriti to guide their children towards a harmonious coexistence with screens in a digital world.