ScreenStrong Families
After her oldest son, Adam, dropped out of college due to his video game addiction, Melanie Hempe, BSN, put her nursing degree and training from Emory University to good use and founded ScreenStrong. It’s her mission to create educational programs for kids and parents so no one will experience the pain of screen addiction. Her ability to simplify medical science and provide practical solutions for families has allowed her to share her passion and bold screen solutions nationally. ScreenStrong has won the hearts of many families who are preventing and reversing childhood screen conflicts and addiction.
Host of the popular weekly ScreenStrong Families Podcast, Melanie has been featured in Psychology Today, Thrive-Global, The Wall Street Journal, A&E Network, CBS, CNN, NPR, the documentary Screened Out, and various news and television outlets. Her ScreenStrong Kids’ Brains and Screens Courses are available for parents and students. Her four books include, “Kids’ Brains & Screens: A ScreenStrong Student Course,” “Will Your Gamer Survive College?” “Can Your Teen Survive—and Thrive—Without a Smartphone?” and “The ScreenStrong Solution: How to Free Your Child from Addictive Screen Habits.”
ScreenStrong Families
The Myth of the Forbidden Fruit with Melanie Hempe (#97)
Join us in today's episode where Melanie unpacks the myth of the forbidden fruit. This myth is based on the theory that if you limit an activity that your children desperately want, they will long for it even more, it will make it more appealing, and they will binge on technology when they are older and/or in college.
Melanie emphasizes that ScreenStrong is not about supporting the removal of screens from a family's life as that is just not possible in the day and age that we live in. She points out the brain science that debunks the myth of the forbidden fruit, such as the concept of neuronal pruning and pathways, the developmental areas of the brain in adolescence, and how dopamine plays a role during the teenage years.
ScreenStrong is about increasing awareness of toxic screen use in our daily lives, education on how toxic screen use negatively impacts our children's development and supporting family values of connection and community when raising our children.
This episode is short, sweet, and full of ScreenStrong inspiration!
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ScreenStrong Tech Recommendations
- Gabb Wireless—Smartphone Replacement (use code STRONG for discount)
- Canopy—Device Filter (use code STRONG for discount)
Production Team:
- Host: Melanie Hempe
- Producer & Audio Editor: Olivia Kernekin
