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Dad working from home with toddler
I’m parenting 4 kids of different ages during the pandemic. How do I help my family balance media-use healthfully in lockdown?
 I’m parenting 4 kids of different ages during the pandemic. How do I help my family balance media-use healthfully in lockdown? 1024 462 Mediatrics

Q: My partner and I are parenting three children (ages 3.5, 6 and 10) while staying with my sister and her family, which includes a 19-year-old college student. We’re all in lockdown as my sister is high-risk for coronavirus. The adults are working from home, and some of the kids are remote learning. There are…

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Facebook Messenger Kids
Should I let my children use Facebook’s Messenger Kids app?
 Should I let my children use Facebook’s Messenger Kids app? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: I recently read about Facebook’s new messenger app for kids. My kids, who are 6 and 9, have their own smartphones and currently use them for calling/texting only (I think). We’ve avoided using social media apps, as I worry about the content and protecting their privacy. Is Facebook’s new app a good “gateway” app…

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Teenage boy using his cell phone while his mother looks at him with a worried expression
How can I help my teen focus and stop procrastinating with media?
 How can I help my teen focus and stop procrastinating with media? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: My 17 year-old son spends 4-5 hours at a time on YouTube, clicking endlessly from one sports comedy show to another. He is doing okay in high school, but will binge-watch or follow links from site to site until the wee hours. I can’t get him to put the phone or laptop down. I…

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Fake Instagram
Should I be concerned about my teen’s Finstagram (fake Instagram) account?
 Should I be concerned about my teen’s Finstagram (fake Instagram) account? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: My 16 year old daughter is obsessed with Instagram and constantly taking pictures to share on the app. I recently discovered that she has two accounts…one of which she calls her “Finstagram” and says she only allows her closest friends to follow her (I follow her on her more “popular” account). While I understand it’s…

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Two women on phones over breakfast
Can media use cause teens to be unhappy with their bodies and contribute to eating disorders?
 Can media use cause teens to be unhappy with their bodies and contribute to eating disorders? 750 315 Mediatrics

Es En Espanol Q: You have mentioned research showing that using certain media can make teens sad and/or anxious and that there are also studies linking negative feelings to unhealthy eating habits. Therefore, do you think that negative feelings resulting from teens’ media use, as opposed to real-life events, can lead to unhealthy eating behaviors? ~  Starving for…

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Kik ATM
Should I let my tween use the Kik messenger app?
 Should I let my tween use the Kik messenger app? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: Would you allow an 11-year-old child to use the Kik app? I say “no”, but would like to know your thoughts – thanks! ~ Kik Me, Annapolis, MD A: Dear KM, Parenting in the 21st Century includes deciding how to manage children’s screen media use, which means many different decisions about issues from television…

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Online Comments
How can I protect my child from inappropriate comments online?
 How can I protect my child from inappropriate comments online? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: How do you deal with racism, vulgarity, and hatred found in comment sections, even on websites hosting material that is appropriate for my child like YouTube or educational coding websites? ~Troll Fighter, Grand Rapids, MI A: Dear TF, This is a great question, and one I’m sure anyone who has ever scrolled through an online…

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Masturbation webcam ATM
I’m 14 and masturbate on webcam for strangers, how can I stop?
 I’m 14 and masturbate on webcam for strangers, how can I stop? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: I’m 14 and have had this bad habit for a while now, almost a year; I masturbate on webcam for total strangers. My mom’s caught me before, but that didn’t stop me. But now it’s taken control of my life. Like last week, on the last day of school, I masturbated in the boys’…

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Internet device addiction
How should clinicians diagnose patients with “Internet Addiction”?
 How should clinicians diagnose patients with “Internet Addiction”? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: I am a clinician who teaches psychiatry at a major medical school, where I lead a class on assessment and diagnosis of mental health and behavioral disorders. Recently my students asked me what kind of diagnosis one should give to designate Internet Addiction. What is the current understanding and clinical best practice? ~ Befuddled…

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Relationship status
How can I stop cyberstalking my ex-boyfriend on social media?
 How can I stop cyberstalking my ex-boyfriend on social media? 750 315 Mediatrics

Q: My boyfriend of 2 years just broke up with me. We’re still “Friends” on Facebook and follow each other on Instagram and a few other social networks (Snapchat & Vine). When we broke up, I unsubscribed from his newsfeed but I can’t help looking up his profile every now and then. I also see…

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