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  • Films for Parents / CarersThis is the Nip in the Bud Films for Parents / Carers post type

        • Mental Health Conditions

        • AnxietyAnxiety disorders are one of the most common mental health problems identified in children. Estimates of the rates of prevalence vary greatly from 8% to 27% lifetime prevalence by age 18. Chronic anxiety disorders are associated with increased risk of other serious mental health problems in later life. Therefore, early identification and treatment is key. Watch our information and real life experience films below or view and download our fact sheet and supporting presentation.
        • Depression
        • OCD
        • PTSD
        • Eating Disorders
        • Why is my child self-harming?
        • TraumaTrauma in children may be: A one-off experience, such as a car crash Living in an atmosphere that feels unsafe, or where they are witness to violence Experiencing, or witnessing, harm Experiences of war, or of becoming a refugee Stressful and challenging experiences are a part of life, and most children will experience these at some point. This becomes traumatic if the event is more than a child can make sense of, or cope with. To learn more about Trauma in Children, please refer to our informational and real-life experiences videos.
        • Body dysmorphic disorder

        • Neurodivergent Conditions

        • ADHD
        • Autism
        • Conduct Disorders/ODD
        • DyslexiaDyslexia in children is a common neurodevelopmental disorder affecting language processing, particularly in reading, spelling, and writing. It emerges early in childhood and persists into adulthood. Encourage your child’s strengths and provide a patient, nurturing environment. Remember, dyslexia doesn’t define intelligence. With the right resources like ours below, your child can flourish and excel in their own unique way.

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        • UK Trauma Council ResourcesNip in the Bud is very grateful to the UK Trauma Council for permitting us to show on our website their series of four excellent animation films about Trauma and PTSD. The UK Trauma Council’s work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License. These animations have been produced with the involvement of young people themselves, and are designed to help young people and the adults around them recognise the signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. They also suggest ways of coping with scary memories, explain the science around the best treatments, and answer any worries you might have about getting support.

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        • Smartphones: A Stolen Childhood
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        • Mental Health Conditions

        • AnxietyIt is becoming increasingly common that children and young people in your school or classroom may be diagnosed with anxiety. Symptoms of anxiety in children vary, but it’s important that you are able to understand and recognise how this might affect learning in a classroom environment. It’s normal for everyone to feel anxious from time to time – it’s a normal response to stress. However, some young people may experience uncontrollable levels of anxiety that are excessive in relation to what’s happening around them –can therefore struggle with their day-to-day tasks and schoolwork. Common worries can become overwhelming for children and young people with anxiety leading to them becoming quite distressed. If this does happen there are a few ways in which you can respond to try and calm the situation. Some signs and symptoms to look out for include tears when entering school, being withdrawn from their peers, concentration difficulties, fidgeting, changes in appetite, and irritability. Download our factsheet for more information on what to look for if you suspect a child or young person in your class is suffering from anxiety. Getting the conversation going can be a good starting point – for example, planning lessons themed around…
        • DepressionDepression is a common yet serious mood disorder that involves a persistence of deep sadness, hopelessness, and numbness. Someone experiencing depressing may feel a constant melancholy that prevents them from enjoying their everyday life. Children and young people especially can feel alone and misunderstood which often stops them from expressing how they feel to people close to them. This isolation can lead to suicidal feelings, self-harm and, in a worst-case scenario, suicide. Parents and teachers are often the first to identify the symptoms of depression in children and young people. Some key symptoms of depression include excessive and persistent worry, moodiness, over or undereating, and self-harm. Some symptoms manifest in physical ways that are a little easier to spot as a teacher during school time such as frequent aches and pains, not wanting to play, either complete isolation or clinginess, and uncharacteristic irritability and anger. There are many risk factors at school that can lead a child to develop depression. As a teacher, you should be on the lookout for children experiencing bullying, social isolation, a lack of self-confidence, and an inability to keep up with schoolwork, among other factors. Children particularly vulnerable to depression are ones who experience abuse,…
        • OCDObsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental health condition that involves repetitive, intrusive, and impulsive thoughts and images entering the mind, causing intense anxiety. As a result of this anxiety, the child or young person engages in compulsive or repetitive behaviours designed to ease their anxiety. They then obsessively repeat these behaviours to rid themselves of the anxiety, causing detriment to their daily life. Early signs of OCD can include excessive worrying and feeling a strong sense of responsibility over yourself and others. A child or young person will ask for constant reassurance about whether their homework is correct or whether they are doing something right or being a good student as they no longer trust their own judgement. As a teacher, these are early signs you can look out for which can inform how you approach the child going forward. Stress at school and bullying are key factors which exacerbate the development of OCD – the more overwhelmed a child feels, the more they give into their compulsive, repetitive behaviours to ease their anxiety. As a teacher, it is your duty to make sure the classroom is a safe space for all, keeping an eye on students who seem…
        • PTSDPTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder can be triggered in children and young people when they experience a particularly horrifying or scarring event. The cause can be as varied as a car crash or sexual assault. A child can develop PTSD if they are involved in this event, witnessed it, or even heard about it second-hand. It can be difficult to identify PTSD in children and young people, as they are reluctant to talk about the trauma they experienced as a way to protect themselves. However, there are some tell-tale signs of PTSD that you can look out for in your students. Children with PTSD will often have trouble concentrating and may even fall asleep during school time due to the lack of sleep they’re having at home, making learning much harder. A sudden plummet in grades is also a red flag – in such cases, it is important to check up on the student rather than reprimand them, which can cause further harm. PTSD also causes many children or young people to become highly irritable and angry due to the intense emotions they’re experiencing, often making them see other people as a threat. In this case, it is important to…
        • Eating DisordersAn eating disorder develops when a child’s and young person’s emotional well-being gets tangled up with their eating habits – for example, if their self-esteem is dependent on how much they eat or don’t eat. Eating disorders are most common in teenagers between the ages of 13 to 17 and they can manifest in a multitude of ways. Anorexia nervosa is a serious mental illness where a person has an intense fear of gaining weight, often accompanied by body dysmorphia – a distorted view of one’s body. This fear leads them to eat very little or nothing at all, leading to severe and potentially life-threatening weight loss. Bulimia nervosa is a serious mental illness that stems from being shamed about consuming large amounts of food, and your weight. A person will binge eat as much food as they can in a short space of time – this is often out of their control. They will then purge – making themselves throw up all the food they have eaten to avoid putting on weight from the binge. This leads to severe and potentially life-threatening weight loss. Binge eating is a serious mental illness which, similarly to Bulimia, involves consuming large amounts…
        • Self-harm in the ClassroomSelf-harm in children and young people happens when a person experiences an overwhelming flood of emotions such as guilt, shame, anger, hate, and a lack of control. This leads them to inflict deliberate harm upon themselves as a way to relieve the flood of emotions they are experiencing and punish themselves for feeling them in the first place. This can take the form of cutting themselves with sharp objects, over-eating or under-eating, pulling their hair out, burning themselves, and misusing intoxicants such as alcohol and drugs. Distress and overwhelming emotions often manifest during school time, and as a teacher it is important to have an awareness that school can be a trigger for students struggling with self-harming tendencies. Create a safe and open space for all students by letting your students know you are always here to support and hear them out whenever they need it. Common signs of self-harm include cuts, burns, and hair-pulling – these are easier to spot as they are often visible on the student’s body. However, young people can be very good at hiding their scars under long jumpers and trousers. If a student is adamant about keeping their jumper on even during hot temperatures,…
        • TraumaIf a child in your care is suffering with Trauma, they will be very distressed. This may be obvious, or it may show up in the form of physical ailments such as headaches or vomiting. They may show signs of regression in toileting or feeding, struggle with their schoolwork or find it difficult to concentrate. Watch our Informational film on Trauma and Children with Dr Sian Williams and Dr David Trickey to understand how children react to Trauma and how they can be helped.
        • Body dysmorphic disorder

        • Neurodivergent Conditions

        • ADHDADHD, or Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder, presents itself in many ways which can sometimes make it difficult for teachers to spot the signs. It is characterised by difficulties in the areas of attention, level of activity and impulse control. ADHD is a recognised developmental disorder which can affect many areas of a child’s life – including in a learning environment. It is common for ADHD to be misdiagnosed in girls, as the symptoms of ADHD present differently to that of boys, and aren’t as commonly shared. One of the most important things you can do as a teacher for a student with ADHD is to learn and understand how they are feeling, and how they see the world around them. Sometimes for students with ADHD it may feel like nobody understands them. In this video, we go through our tips for teachers who have a child in their class who has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Also, view our Practical Tips for Teachers in the Classroom below .
        • Autism
        • Conduct Disorders/ODDODD, or oppositional defiant disorder, is diagnosed in children and young people that are persistently and repetitively antisocial, disobedient, have frequent tantrums, can not listen to authority, and purposely harm others. Conduct disorders are the most common disorders in children and are more frequent in boys, with 7% of boys and 3% of girls meeting the criteria for conduct disorders. It is normal for children and young people to be defiant towards authority to some degree, but if a particular student stands out from the others in your class and is perpetually defiant, violent and resentful towards others, this can develop into ODD. A child or young person with ODD will often engage in a range of violent and destructive behaviours such as fighting, temper tantrums, arguing with adults and peers, and lying and blaming others for their behaviour. In some extreme cases, the child or young person may engage in being cruel to animals and starting fires. As a teacher, it can be difficult to know how to handle a student with ODD in a way that ensures they make the most of their learning and helps their behaviours and social relationships. However, there are things you can do…
        • DyslexiaChildren with Dyslexia have a different intelligence, way of thinking and way of seeing the world.  Many innovators, inventors and successful entrepreneurs have been Dyslexic.  Dyslexic thinking skills include imagination, inspiration, creativity and the ability to solve things. They sometimes find it difficult to fit into rigorous, inflexible education methods. Our resources for teachers and professionals on Dyslexia explain that if the condition is spotted early, there are strategies that can be used to work on the strengths of Dyslexic children which will allow them to develop different talents and thrive in life.

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        • Early Intervention SeriesThis Early Intervention series of short episodes produced by Nip in the Bud are a guide to how schools can help parents if they notice changes in behaviour or in emotional wellbeing in a child and how parents and teaching staff can work together to address potential children’s mental health conditions.
        • Training Resource
        • UK Trauma Council ResourcesNip in the Bud has been given permission by the UK Trauma Council to share this series of four short animations which they have produced on the topic of Trauma and PTSD. The UK Trauma Council’s work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License. These animations have been produced with the involvement of young people themselves, and are designed to help young people and the adults around them recognise the signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. They also suggest ways of coping with scary memories, explain the science around the best treatments, and answer any worries you might have about getting support.

        • Emotional Wellbeing

        • Grief & loss
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        • Smartphones: A Stolen Childhood
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Blog / Emotional Wellbeing / How to move towards a smartphone free childhood

How to move towards a smartphone free childhood

Posted on: 7th September 2024
An image of a child looking at a smart phone is reflected

This article summarises the Nip in the Bud Podcast on how to move towards a smartphone free childhood and focuses on the pressures felt by children, parents and school professionals around the use of smartphones, social media, gaming and online bullying.

We consider the questions…

  • Is my child addicted to their smartphone?
  • How can I help my kids balance phone and screen time with time outside?
  • How can schools support parents in not buying their child a phone while in primary school?
  • How can schools teach online safety in primary school?
  • How can I check my child’s phone usage?
  • What Apps can my child use safely?
  • How can I protect my child from online bullying and porn?
  • What is the link between mental health problems and smartphones in our children?

To find out the answers to these questions read on and  listen to our podcast with Susie Davies at Nip in the Bud Podcasts.

I am an education consultant and ex-Head Teacher, Alis Rocca, and I am in conversation with Dr Susie Davies on this podcast. Susie is a GP and the mother of two teenage daughters and a twelve-year-old son. Five years ago, when deciding how to manage smartphones within her own family, Susie founded the charity PAPAYA (Parents Against Phone Addiction in Young Adolescents). PAPAYA  aims to educate and empower parents on the mental health problems associated with smartphones and social media, and to help parents work together when navigating how they can  delay technology with their children. 

In this podcast we discuss the common issues and concerns that arise when children have access to smartphones and social media at a young age. Susie talks about her experience as a GP coming across the mental health issues linked to unlimited phone, social media and internet use. She shares her experience as a mother dealing with the challenging parenting approaches that are required to keep your child safe, happy and healthy as they grow and develop.

Some of the themes that Susie and I discuss together are:

What is the correlation between mental health problems and the use of technology?

  • Use of smartphone from a young age
  • Excessive use of technology leading to poor mental health
  • Phone addiction
  • Underage use of Apps 

How can we delay buying our child a smartphone?

  • Work together with other parents to agree to a no phones embargo
  • Work together with the school to inform and teach other parents and children of the dangers of having a smartphone too young 
  • Form community to create a healthy, positive balance with technology

What is the effect of technology on our lives?

  • Impacts on our relationships
  • Affects our interpersonal skills
  • Takes time away from other hobbies and skills
  • Takes time away from our exercise and healthy living
  • Reduces our self confidence through comparison
  • Impacts on how we view the world and ourselves within it

Why is comparison so damaging to our mental health?

  • Social media encourages comparison with people from around the whole world
  • False idea of reality online with no real ‘backstory’
  • Comparison begins younger as younger children have access to social media
  • Comparison impacts how we feel about ourselves mentally, physically and emotionally

What can schools do to help?

  • Review and update the phone policy and technology use regularly
  • Keep phones away from children during the school day
  • Engage with parents regularly and inform them of the detrimental side of smartphone usage
  • Encourage parents to delay buying a phone until secondary school
  • Headteachers to collaborate so that all local schools have similar policy

During our conversation we consider the question…

What does a thriving family look like in this technology heavy age?

Susie discusses the idea that a thriving family is one that shows positive wellbeing. It is a family where all members of it are doing well, and are living life well, rather than just surviving.  We go on to discuss how there are so many benefits that technology can bring to our families and we need to be clever and vigilant in order to take the best bits and leave anything that is detrimental to us all thriving.

For example, being able to stream a great movie or series and enjoy watching it together as a family. Taking time to discuss it afterwards and to share ideas or thoughts on any of the themes that may have been brought up. Listening to music, being able to access art and dance and literature at the press of a button is exceptionally rewarding and fulfilling,  and we should be sharing these experiences together. All of this can help us to thrive in our lives and to develop and grow. Through the use of technology we can learn about all parts of the world, about people and their cultures, and about history and this can be something that may change us for the better as humans.

Technology can bring us together but we need to have good boundaries in order to make sure we utilise the best bits of tech. We need to know when to switch off screens and how to find balance in our lives. 

Screen time must be balanced with time reading a book, exercising, eating together, doing tasks and being outside in nature. Each one of these is as important as the next and children need to be explicitly taught this. As parents and educationalists we are fighting against huge corporations who make millions by understanding how the human brain works and using this neuroscience to better sell their products that will steal our time and ultimately make us unhappy. They understand how to create dopamine hits in the brain that help to get us addicted to phone usage, to gaming, online shopping or scrolling endlessly. It takes the whole family working together, and with other families, to understand this and to notice when the balance has tipped the wrong way. 

As parents and professionals working with children, we must model the behaviours that we wish to see in the children. This will mean switching off the phone or computer, putting it away so that  notifications do not disturb a meal or a conversation. It means time fully present with oneself or with a family member with no emails or messages being sent or screens used for any reason. If we do not demonstrate this to our children, they will not do it in return. They will not feel the benefits of screens being put away and will only remember the bursts of dopamine that keep them addicted to their phones.

We need to be modelling good boundaries from the moment we have babies, they watch and learn from our behaviours even from the earliest age. A play-based childhood, and one in which children are encouraged to be creative, active and outdoors often, will impact positively on their development and their mental health.

We need to understand the effect of looking at screens before sleep and how this impacts negatively not only on the time it takes to get to sleep, but on the quality of the sleep we have throughout the night and on the duration of our sleep. The impact of not having enough good quality sleep affects the brain both in adults and children and we can often see and feel this in the brain fog, the sleepiness felt in  mid-afternoon, the lack of focus, energy and sometimes the lack of joy found in doing things that would ordinarily bring us a sense of wellbeing and fulfilment.

Susie goes on to discuss some of the data that is coming out of the millennium cohort study which is showing that if girls spend more than 5 hours a day on screen they have a 40% chance of having mental health issues. It is becoming more apparent that the younger that children are given screens, the more the correlation between mental health issues, emotionally based school avoidance and self-harm.

As parents and educational professionals we need to come up with healthy boundaries and compromises that will protect our children online and with potential phone addiction. We are in a better position than them to know and understand the dangers of screen use, and this should be central to our conversations with them. Talking to your child about their phone and screen use, sharing the knowledge about phone addiction and how this works in the brain with your child in order for them to understand what is happening, is key to keeping them safe. The likelihood is that we will get resistance from them for this type of conversation and we need to be ok with that and do it anyway.

Children need to be comfortable with difficult conversations so that they know they are safe in sharing any online bullying that they may be receiving or indeed seeing happening to their peers. They need to understand the importance of calling bullying out and know that over time consistent online bullying will impact on their mental health leaving them feeling a lack of self-confidence, feeling unsafe and a victim. Speaking to an adult can support them to know how to manage the situation and to hold the bully to account.

Because porn is so readily available online, parents must understand that if they give a child a smartphone they are then potentially only one click away from accessing porn. Once seen, this cannot be unseen. Susie explains the highly addictive and harmful impact of porn on our children. They need to know that they can talk to the adults in their lives who can help and support them through what they may have been exposed to.

As well as ensuring we have open and honest relationships, to protect our children and young people we can also look at the phone regularly and see the average screen time, the App usage and the search history. We can use parental control Apps to ensure safer usage. Conversations need to be had around this and we need to begin to change any negative habits and replace them with other family oriented things – board games, going for walks, visits etc. We need to replace the negative with positive, not simply remove the phone, game or app, but be proactive in creating shared positive habits that can replace them, together.

Let us know what you do to help keep your child safe around smartphones and online usage.

Listen to our podcast and read and download our fact sheet to find out more, or watch our film for parents and film for teachers.

 

Useful links

  • Jonathan Haidt: The Anxious Generation
  • Anna Freud – Mentally Healthy Schools: Online/Cyber Bullying

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