In today’s fast moving, tech saturated world, screens are everywhere, and there seems to be an app now for almost anything you can imagine.  While I love technology, and all that it has to offer, I also find myself longing more and more for those moments where I can just unplug, and give my mind a necessary brain break.  When I was offered the opportunity to narrate Molly DeFrank’s wonderful new book, Digital Detox: The Two-Week Tech Reset For Kids, by christianaudio, I was both intrigued and excited.  I couldn’t wait to find out what this digital detox was all about.

First, let me preface by saying that DeFrank is not against tech –  far from it – but she and her husband had started noticing significant behavioral changes in their kids – they were no longer their spunky selves. They were grumpy, dazed and slowly “morphing … into swamp creatures.”  One day, upon returning home after hours of being away, DeFrank noticed that she wasn’t greeted with a loving “Hi Mommy!” or  “I missed you.”  Instead, she was asked a rather irksome question, “can I play on your phone?” – something DeFrank describes in her book – as sounding more akin to “Hey, gatekeeper of electronics? Gimme a fix.”  This clarifying moment, prompted her and her hubby to take action, in what would soon become – a two-week tech reset for their kids –  cold turkey.

So what exactly is a tech reset?  And how do we undo this tech trance? Well, basically a tech reset, or digital detox, is the unplugging from ALL screens and electronics for a given amount of time. To undo the tech trance, DeFrank provides us with this helpful acronym:

Unplug cold turkey.

Notice your kid’s interests, talents, opportunities for growth.

Develop a list of screen-free fun together

Open the books!

In a book that is both warm, relatable and funny, DeFrank also weaves in facts, research, personal stories and studies that showcase, without a doubt, the negative impact that too much tech is having on our kids … and on us.  Of the families that Molly DeFrank later coached through this two week digital detox, 100% of families had positive results.

Our approach to tech media doesn’t have to be one way or the highway, it just needs to be on our terms.  In its right place, technology can be productive, helpful, relaxing and fun.  We just need to make sure that we, and not technology, remain in the driver’s seat.

Digital Detox is now available on Audible, Amazon and across all platforms.