Autism Soccer: Screen Addiction

Friday, March 17, 2017

Watch out For Those Games

Control the time your child spends on the console, take him/her for a walk.

Technology has made great contributions in the way we live, in terms of time and the ease of our daily routines. From computers to microwaves, almost everything in this era is made for our comfort and commodity. But it also made us dependent on those electronic devices, when you try to imagine life without a TV or an air conditioner it may be hard to come up or remembering how it was.

Kids are the best example of this dependence; they were born in the middle of these developments and to them, it’s normal to be surrounded by all those technologies. And there’s a thing that they love the most now: video games.

Special needs children, as you must know already, are highly introverted and shy. They have a hard time expressing themselves, only with the proper guidance and support it’s possible for them to open up. Video games are very engaging and catchy to kids and can become somewhat addictive to them.

Gaming addiction

The problem with this addiction it’s that the kid will occupy most of the time with the game, closing his gates of communication with his family and even friends. In the long term, they won’t be able to express themselves correctly. Also, kids who develop video games addiction can become very problematic and conflictive when trying to dissuade them to stop playing, making the addiction a serious matter in families.

Do not let this addiction go further, show your kid alternatives to video games, such as: going to the park, exercising, reading or just going for a walk. The importance of this is to control this dependence before it gets out of control.

ASD kids are really intelligent and games can help them develop certain skills, it’s not about stopping them from playing, but avoiding their day to be all about playing games. Want a healthy alternative? Try with Autism Soccer, put your kid to practice some sports so he/she can find joy in being outside that screen.

It's not about taking the console away from them, just give them different options.

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Thursday, January 12, 2017

Is Your Child a Screen Addict?

Nowadays, TV and the internet are alternatives to make life easier. But, these can bring some risks along to our health and to our children's.

Screens are part of our everyday lives. It’s quite common to have one or some of those at home and also at the office; especially for people who have a direct contact with screens to do their job, like engineers, movie critics, etc. In this way, it’s not a problem, but it is when it comes to children. Nowadays, people have access to all kinds of information through cable TV, computers, and cell phone screens because of the internet, and this might turn into a big problem when it comes to kids at an early age.

It’s known that more than 60% of the population spend a good chunk of their day using screens, apart from their formal obligations, such as work or studies, which make this technological tool one the preferred choices to spend free time. You, as a parent, need to spot the signs of screen addiction before it becomes a severe problem. But how can you identify this as a problem? We’re here to help you with that!

What’s a screen addiction?

Although screen addiction is not recognized yet, it's important for you to know exactly what it is. This is defined as the unnecessary hours spent using screens, avoiding obligations that people normally have. For adults, these hours count on work time; for children, they count on the time they spend doing academic tasks. Normally, children should spend less than 2 hours a day in front of a screen. Also, it’s important to define something early on: most people think screens are just the ones from a computer or a smart device like a tablet or smartphone but TV units are in this category too, which also cause addiction.

Signs of screen addiction:

Anxiety without screens.
Compulsive behavior (gaming, betting, social, etc.)
Dishonest behavior: Mostly negation of being addicted to a screen.
Self-imposed isolation. Only interacting through screens.
Sleeping problems, such as frequent nightmares.
Frequent headaches and eye soreness.
Carpal tunnel syndrome and other conditions related to overuse of computers.

Your children count on you to know better how to deal with problems that affect them. Be aware of the signs that might indicate a screen addiction on your child and be aware of the things you need to do to fight against it. One of the best alternatives is to introduce them to sports, such as the ones that Autism Soccer offers. It’s important for them to have a proper activity in order to reach their goals and avoid those screen addiction problems. Encourage them to spend time doing other enjoyable things with the help of the right people. Contact them now!