If your daughter’s reaching (or has reached) the age when you feel it’s time she had a phone, you know you’re entering into a challenge.
by Fran Hendrick, PCC
Getting a cell phone warrants a celebration, right? Of course! But like any rite of passage, there is both responsibility and risk attached to it. Having a phone in her possession raises a number of very real health and safety issues because cell phone use is implicated in anxiety, stress, depression, cyberbullying, addiction, and emotional dependency (that’s right, cell phones can erode confidence!) — for starters. Like driving later on, handing your daughter her first phone merits some planning.
Join me Friday for a Facebook Livestream on this this topic!
I’ve got three things for you on this topic:
1. The Cell Phone Safe Use Resource Sheet
I’ve put this together to help you create an informed plan — and yes, I really do think it’s that important. The research is coming in and it’s disturbing. But along with the research, we’ve now got more strategies and guidelines to help having a phone be a constructive experience for kids.
In this Resource Sheet, I cover:
- Links to information you need to educate yourself in order to plan for your daughter.
- Links to information on Parental Controls — super important.
- How your own fears can get in the way of taking steps to protect your daughter.
- How to structure a conversation with your daughter on this delicate topic.
- How to respond to her feelings about implementing some structure around cell phone use.
2. From the Blog Archives
This issue of emotional dependency cuts right to the heart of what so many moms want for their daughters — and that’s confidence. In the post below, I’ve explained how cell phones can erode confidence. It’s not a small thing.
How smart phones can erode self-confidence and thwart independence (and why you might be having a hard time intervening)
3. This Week’s Facebook Live
I’ll be talking about this topic and other questions, as well, Friday August 24 at 11:00 AM Eastern Time in a Facebook Live. You can join this event on my Facebook Page. (By the way — previous topics are also there for you to view. Just click the Video tab and you’ll see them.)
Looking forward to connecting with you!
Professional clinical counselor, parenting columnist, and teacher Fran Hendrick has provided coaching and counseling for hundreds of women and girls for twenty-five years. She is a member of the International Association for Psychoanalytic Self Psychology. In addition to her therapy practice, Fran provides consultation online and by phone for moms participating in her Helping Confidence Bloom classes and upcoming ecourse.
Fran divides her time among working with clients, kayaking with her husband, and scampering up jungle gyms with her granddaughters. Clients appreciate Fran’s calm, empathic style, her practical strategies and solid advice, and her playful spirit. Wildflower House, Fran’s cozy personal development studio in charming, historic Loveland, Ohio provides a space for women and girls to grow the confidence to become exactly who they’re meant to be.
Contact Fran or call 513 677-9800.
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