(Radio Iowa) – With kids headed back to school in a few weeks, an expert says now would be the ideal time for parents to start weaning them off of social media so they’ll be able to better focus on their studies. Gerta Bardhoshi, a professor of counselor education at the University of Iowa, says don’t try and force them to quit everything cold turkey, but do offer suggestions on how they can start breaking what may be a slight addiction to their electronic devices.

How much is too much social media? Teenagers themselves may know they may have a problem. A recent survey found one-third of teens say they are online “constantly,” while another third said they spend “too much time” on social media.

Bardhoshi is director of research and training at the U-I’s Scanlan Center for School Mental Health. She says parents should be somewhat lenient and not try to push their child into giving up all social media, at least not all at once.

Kids will model their parents’ behavior and Bardhoshi says that includes when moms and dads set good examples, and not-so-good examples.

Establishing healthy boundaries around phone and social media use, Bardhoshi says, can benefit the entire family.

Scanlan Center link: https://scsmh.education.uiowa.edu/