April 18, 2012
Q: My 17-year-old son started playing Call of Duty a few months ago. Since that time, he has had more trouble than usual falling asleep and has been waking up in the middle of the night. Last night, he woke me saying he felt like he was having a panic attack—racing heart and hyperventilation. I […]
April 5, 2012
CMCH staff member Kristelle Lavallee contributed the following post to Thriving, Boston Children’s Hospital’s pediatric health blog. Are you looking to take the family to a movie but aren’t sure whether your child should see The Hunger Games (PG-13) or Bully (unrated)? If you base the decision on the Motion Picture Association of American (MPAA) ratings, the answer […]
April 3, 2012
Q: My 16-year-old goddaughter’s parents are not Facebook friends with her, so when someone stole her phone and posted some degrading things to her account, they didn’t know until I told them. Another friend asked me to look at all her 19-year-old daughter’s pictures and let her know if I saw anything inappropriate. How can […]
March 23, 2012
The movie The Hunger Games opens today, and record tickets sales are expected to make the post-apocalyptic survival tale one of the spring’s biggest blockbusters. But just because your child has read The Hunger Game books, does that mean she’s ready to watch it on the big screen?
March 9, 2012
Q: What is the best way I can block websites with sexual content that appear through Web searches on my 15 year old’s iPad and still let him use the Internet for safe sites? The built-in controls are a blunt instrument and block too much or all content. –Seeking Better Blocking, in Nashville, TN A: Dear […]
February 24, 2012
Q: My 10 year old used to be an avid skateboarder and baseball player—until Call of Duty on XBOX Live arrived. I didn’t in my wildest dreams think that he would become addicted to a video game. I have a 21 year old who played all of the games but was never ruled by them. […]
February 17, 2012
Q: Is there a connection between excessive video game playing and increased anxiety levels? My son is 14 and has some basic anxieties like walking the dog at night that I feel are made worse by the first-person shooter games he plays. I’d love to understand if you have seen any connections here. –Grappling with […]
January 26, 2012
Q: I have an son who’s 11 and a daughter who’s 9½, and for many years, they have sat close to the TV when watching. I have asked them to sit farther away, and they do move back maybe a foot…but they always go back to viewing the show close up, even if the screen […]
December 29, 2011
Each week this year, you asked our Mediatrician, Dr. Michael Rich, your most pressing questions about the effects of media on kids, and he answered! Here are the top 10 most-viewed Ask the Mediatrician Q&As from 2011: 1. When should I talk to my girls about media and body image? 2. Are 3D video games safe […]
December 22, 2011
Q: Do you have suggestions for how to find appropriate media, such as educational video games, for different ages, such as an 8-year-old boy who likes war stuff? I’d like to help direct him to more creative sites. –Seeking solutions, in Burlington, VT A: Dear Seeking, It’s not always easy to know which video games […]
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