Mental Health & Technology

Dr. Ashley Harlow is a dad of four who definitely understands the complexities of parenting with healthy boundaries around screen time. As a licensed child and adolescent psychologist at Children's Nebraska in Omaha, he has practical tips that can empower families to create a balanced approach. On this episode we talk about social media, chatbots and warning signs of depression to look out for. Listen now!

With a mission to create a safer internet for everyone and huge celebrity endorsements in Hollywood, Aura has taken the digital safety sphere by storm. Dr. Scott Kollins joined Aura @aura_protects as its Chief Medical Officer. Wielding a robust background in clinical psychology and digital health, his career includes significant contributions to the development of digital therapeutics and mental health solutions. Kollins role at Aura is critical in shaping the company's approach and parent understanding of youth safety and mental wellness in the digital era. Listen today to see what you think - will you be interested in trying out Aura?

Pam Tudin is very familiar with the struggles and triumphs of the human condition as a clinical and forensic psychologist. She's an international speaker on all matters teen and tween and the co-founder of KLIKD, an organization committed to providing, can-do solutions for families to use social media happily, safely, and responsibly. In this episode we talk about the importance of being the soft place for your child to land when they make an online mistake and so much more. Listen today!

Playing outside is so much more than physical activity. Some of the many benefits include fitness, vitamin D and sleep. Being in nature also enhances focus and attention, it improves problem solving, reduces stress, increases empathy, improves mood. The influence of nature is dramatic and pervasive for all of us. There was a study that said that hospital patients, who have views of greenery outside their windows have shorter stays and fewer complications. Reducing screen time, increasing time in nature has the potential to change lives. Listen to Jean Rystrom of the Screen Time Action Network introduce an amazing and FREE resource: The Children & Family Inspiration Guide. It’s got everything you need to encourage your kids to get offline and outside. Listen today!

Tessa Stuckey, AKA:The Mom Therapist, works with families navigating the digital, tech-filled world that our kids are growing up in. Tessa takes on today’s negative cultural effects on our kids’ mental health from the perspective of a therapist but with the heart of a caring mother. In this episode we talk about creating a healthier and positive lifestyle for the whole family through anxiety management, understanding online harms, necessary limits of screen use, and the need for healthy connection. Listen now!

After her oldest son dropped out of college due to his video game addiction, Melanie Hempe put her nursing degree to good use and founded Screen Strong,@bescreenstrong a nonprofit that empowers families to prevent screen problems and reclaim their kids from toxic screens. Listen to this episode and learn how your family can stop fighting over screens, kids can gain more life skills and everyone can benefit!

The mission of the Phone-Free Schools Movement @phonefreeschools is to provide youth the freedom to excel academically and develop socially without the distractions, pressures, and harms of phones and social media during the school day. In this episode meet and listen to all 3 founding members: Kim Whitman, Sabine Polak, and Mileva Repasky recount personal experiences with phones in schools and reasons why a “no phone bell to bell” policy in schools is needed.

Lenore Skenazy is no stranger to doing hard things and sitting in the discomfort of letting your child explore their independence. In 2008 she wrote an article about allowing her 9 year old son to ride a New York City subway all the way home, by himself. The backlash from the public and media was swift…to say the least. Lenore says our kids are smarter, safer, and stronger than our culture gives them credit for and encourages us to get our kids outside, offline and let them grow.

Kris Harrison, PhD is an expert in the relationships families have with media. As the Richard Cole imminent professor in the Hussman School of Journalism and Media at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, she studies children and media in a family context. Recently, she's focused on children's use of media devices and content for sensory regulation and how this is connected with parent-child conflict around the child's media use. Our conversation in this episode centers around neurodivergent children and how their needs for sensory input can vary hugely from their siblings and friends. Many ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder) adults and children are finding success with using technology as a portable control device for overwhelming environments. It’s a really good conversation - one that changed the way I see restaurants and other public areas. I hope you’ll listen!

Alex Basche is a psychotherapist (LMFT) based in the SF Bay Area (ie: the heart of Silicon Valley). He works mainly with adolescents and young adults, specializing in the treatment of tech-related behavioral addictions such as gaming, social media, pornography, online gambling & shopping in addition to substance use disorders. In this episode we discuss how to bridge online gaming with offline tabletop games as a way to ease kids into in person socializing, the concept of Game Transfer Phenomena (a condition in which gamers can experience auditory and visual hallucinations) and much more.

The use of screens and exposure to what is on them seems to be synonymous with growing up today. And we know that what kids see on screens or the content they consume can have effects on offline living. And this is where my guest today comes in as an Associate Professor at the Rutgers School of Public Health. And at Rutgers, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, he is also a core member of the Institute for Nicotine and Tobacco Studies. His research shows the different ways that corporations influence adolescent health with current projects focused on identifying sources of exposure to tobacco marketing among adolescents and young adults.

As the source behind the Wall Street Journal's Facebook Files, Frances Haugen exposed Facebook's awareness, complicity, radicalization in political violence around the world, plus their disregard to users' mental health. Her new book: The Power Of One: How I Found the Strength to Tell the Truth and Why I Blew the Whistle on Facebook, (available in our Amazon Marketplace) tells the backstory and more. I had the opportunity to speak with Frances. She was incredibly generous with her time…so generous that I did something I never have before – that is: create a 2 part episode. Enjoy listening to Part 2 of this fabulous conversation as Frances Haugen talks about ways we can fix social media….not kill it.

The Facebook Whistleblower, Frances Haugen deserves a seat in the High Court of Heroes in the “Do The Right Thing” Justice League ( I just made that up but it should absolutely be a thing.). A data scientist, Harvard graduate, expert of algorithmic product management and an Iowan daughter of two professors, Frances truly moved the needle for humanity when she recognized wrongdoing and stood up for the world. The source behind the Wall Street Journal's, Facebook Files, Frances exposed Facebook's awareness, complicity, radicalization in political violence around the world, plus their disregard to users' mental health. Her new book: The Power Of One: How I Found the Strength to Tell the Truth and Why I Blew the Whistle on Facebook, (available in our Amazon Marketplace) tells the backstory and more. When I had the opportunity to speak with Frances she was incredibly generous with her time…so generous that I am going to do something I never have before – that is: break this episode into 2 parts.

Emma Lembke is a young adult who is the founder of the Log Off Movement, an activist for better legislation for online protections, and a student at Washington University in St Louis. Emma is passionate about leaning into the creativity and resourcefulness of other young people who are interested in choosing their best path forward with technology. Her intergenerational work has created space for dialogue between lawmakers and youth for policy changes that favor protection over profit. Her tips on managing screen time and involving teens to take control of their screen use will help all families.

Teaching body boundaries and online safety is what We Stand Guard does best. We Stand Guard is a training program designed to educate everyone about preventing child sexual abuse and exploitation in all its forms, whether that be physical or non-physical contact abuse. Kimberly Perry is the brains behind the program. Author and elementary school educator, with over 15 years experience working with children across the country, Kimberly has a master of arts and teaching and has taught boundaries and personal safety to over 1000 elementary school students. In this episode she teaches us about body boundaries and online safety for kids

LiveMore ScreenLess is a Minnesota-based organization that uses best practices from education, public health, and positive youth development to engage with family, schools, and organizations to promote balanced, intentional, and effective use of technology. That is the total trifecta! the best of all possible uses of technology! Listen to this episode as I talk to the co-founders Maree Hampton and KK Myers. They are dynamic women who are changing the way Minnesota does tech in schools.

Chris Stedman is a writer, activist, and adjunct professor who teaches in the Dept. of Religion and Philosophy at Augsburg University in Minneapolis, MN. Previously the founding director of the Yale Humanist Community, he also served as a humanist chaplain at Harvard University. He is the author of a new book titled, “IRL: Finding Our Real Selves in a Digital World.” In this episode, we discuss why people are leaving religious institutions in pursuit of finding connections online and what it means to be real in a digital space.