How Excessive Screen Time Impacts Mental Health - with Dr. Azadeh Weber | Epi.30 | Active Action Podcast

In this episode of the 'Active Action Podcast', host Dr. Nazif discusses the effects of excessive screen time on mental health with Dr. Azadeh Weber, a licensed clinical psychologist with a focus on holistic health. The episode explores the difference between productive and recreational screen time, the impact of screen time on dopamine levels and brain function, and the mental health issues arising from excessive digital use. Dr. Weber provides valuable insights into practical strategies to reduce screen time, the potential pitfalls of relying on AI for companionship and mental health, and the importance of nature and other activities in maintaining emotional well-being. Tune in to learn how to balance screen use and nurture mental health across all age groups.

What You’ll Learn:

What is excessive screen time and how it affects dopamine levels, attention span, and mood
Why screen-based recreation vs. screen-based work have different psychological impacts
How prolonged screen use can lead to increased anxiety
Why children from low-income households may be more vulnerable to screen-related mental health effects
What AI lacks in mental health support and why it can’t replace human wisdom or therapeutic connection
The mental health risks of early screen exposure in children
Signs of screen dependency and what to watch for in both children and adults
Practical strategies to reduce screen time and develop healthy digital habits (without feeling deprived)
How nature, group therapy, and cognitive behavioral strategies can help restore mental balance
Why social media is engineered for addiction—and how to protect yourself and your family

Be sure to check the webpage of Dr. Weber at the Active Action Podcast Website to learn more about her work, and ways to connect with her.

Read a blog on this episode.

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[00:00:00] - Episode Overview

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00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 So I would say that when we look at excessive
00:00:02 --> 00:00:05 screen time, we have to look at it in terms of
00:00:05 --> 00:00:09 is this productive screen time or is it just
00:00:09 --> 00:00:12 kind of mindless surfing and is it for recreation?
00:00:12 --> 00:00:17 More and more people are using AI for companionship,
00:00:17 --> 00:00:19 even for mental health benefits and therapy.
00:00:20 --> 00:00:23 I'm wary of it. When we have a vision of the
00:00:23 --> 00:00:29 future, it gives us hope, which can... depression
00:00:29 --> 00:00:33 at bay. However, when people use excessive screen
00:00:33 --> 00:00:37 time and they get addicted to it, it takes away
00:00:37 --> 00:00:39 from their ability to have goals and to work
00:00:39 --> 00:00:44 towards the future, depleting hope. So I feel
00:00:44 --> 00:00:46 people's mental states are being exploited for
00:00:46 --> 00:00:50 economic purposes too. If you don't have the
00:00:50 --> 00:00:53 dopamine because it's just getting depleted on
00:00:53 --> 00:00:56 screens, then it's going to be very hard for
00:00:56 --> 00:01:02 children to focused and do well in school. This
00:01:02 --> 00:01:06 screen has become a type of babysitter for children.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:08 Hello and good morning everyone. Welcome back
00:01:08 --> 00:01:11 to another episode of Active Action Podcast.
00:01:11 --> 00:01:15 It's your host Dr. Nazif back with you again
00:01:15 --> 00:01:18 with another video with another amazing topic
00:01:18 --> 00:01:22 and guest. Before delving into the discussion
00:01:22 --> 00:01:25 just wanted to take this opportunity to shout
00:01:25 --> 00:01:26 out to all the audiences who are keeping sticking
00:01:26 --> 00:01:30 with us and we really do appreciate your constant
00:01:30 --> 00:01:33 engagement and support with the podcast just
00:01:33 --> 00:01:36 want to let you know we did start our premium
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00:01:53 --> 00:01:57 support or patreon .com slash activeaction. Apart
00:01:57 --> 00:02:00 from that, we did start our March. So if you
00:02:00 --> 00:02:03 want to take a look at some high quality clothing
00:02:03 --> 00:02:05 lines, scented candle, water bottles, and other
00:02:05 --> 00:02:09 goodies, feel free to visit www .activeaction
00:02:09 --> 00:02:12 .shop. Apart from that, let's just begin into
00:02:12 --> 00:02:15 our episode today. And today we have with us
00:02:15 --> 00:02:18 Dr. Azadeh Weber. How are you doing, Dr. Weber?
00:02:19 --> 00:02:22 I'm doing well. Thank you for having me on your
00:02:22 --> 00:02:27 show today, Dr. Nazif. Thank you so much, Dr.
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 Weber. And we really appreciate you giving your
00:02:30 --> 00:02:33 valuable time within your busy schedule to spend
00:02:33 --> 00:02:35 a few minutes with our audience this morning
00:02:35 --> 00:02:39 and talk about how excessive screen time impacts
00:02:39 --> 00:02:41 mental health. We know excessive screen time
00:02:41 --> 00:02:45 is indeed... A very big concern at today's modern
00:02:45 --> 00:02:48 era where everything has literally turned into
00:02:48 --> 00:02:51 digital. There is social media. People are using
00:02:51 --> 00:02:55 computer screens and other digital devices more
00:02:55 --> 00:02:57 rather than pen and paper that they used to do
00:02:57 --> 00:03:00 in earlier days. So screen time is indeed a big
00:03:00 --> 00:03:03 factor in our life, whether we are in our youths
00:03:03 --> 00:03:06 or in our mid -age or even in the elderlies.
00:03:06 --> 00:03:09 Before diving into the podcast, I just wanted
00:03:09 --> 00:03:12 to introduce you guys a bit about Dr. Weber.
00:03:13 --> 00:03:15 Dr. Weber is a licensed clinical psychologist
00:03:15 --> 00:03:19 with a focus on holistic health. In her private
00:03:19 --> 00:03:21 practice, she works with individuals, couples,
00:03:22 --> 00:03:25 and families to optimize mental health, and she's
00:03:25 --> 00:03:29 thrilled to introduce Thrive Together as a primary
00:03:29 --> 00:03:32 course offering. Thrive Together combines the
00:03:32 --> 00:03:36 personal attention of individualized sessions
00:03:36 --> 00:03:40 with the dynamic growth of a vital group program.
00:03:40 --> 00:03:42 designed to help participants build stronger
00:03:42 --> 00:03:46 relationships and enhance emotional well -being.
00:03:47 --> 00:03:51 With such a diverse background and topics to
00:03:51 --> 00:03:53 discuss, and with the psychological background
00:03:53 --> 00:03:56 that Dr. Weber brings, I'm really hopeful that
00:03:56 --> 00:03:58 we'll have a very fruitful discussion that would
00:03:58 --> 00:04:01 be valuable for our audiences. So, Dr. Weber,
00:04:01 --> 00:04:04 do you want to introduce yourself a bit apart
00:04:04 --> 00:04:08 from what I just said to our audiences? Well,
00:04:08 --> 00:04:12 you said a lot on my introduction. So I used
00:04:12 --> 00:04:16 to work in the tech industry before I went to
00:04:16 --> 00:04:19 grad school, where I was in business development
00:04:19 --> 00:04:24 at a large corporation and also a Series D funded
00:04:24 --> 00:04:27 startup. So I do have some experience in the
00:04:27 --> 00:04:30 tech industry as well. And I'm a mother of two
00:04:30 --> 00:04:34 kids. I did my clinical training in the Palo
00:04:34 --> 00:04:38 Alto and San Francisco Unified Schools. So yeah,
00:04:38 --> 00:04:42 that's pretty much my background. That's wonderful,
00:04:42 --> 00:04:45 Dr. Weber. I want to discuss to you a bit about
00:04:45 --> 00:04:49 excessive screen time. So I did talk a bit about
00:04:49 --> 00:04:52 screen time before, but can I ask from your professional
00:04:52 --> 00:04:56 background, how do we define excessive screen
00:04:56 --> 00:04:59 time? And is there a threshold where screen usage
00:04:59 --> 00:05:02 becomes harmful to mental health at some point?
00:05:03 --> 00:05:07 Thank you. So I would say that when we look at
00:05:07 --> 00:05:09 excessive screen time, we have to look at it
00:05:09 --> 00:05:13 in terms of is this productive screen time or
00:05:13 --> 00:05:16 is it just kind of mindless surfing and is it
00:05:16 --> 00:05:20 for recreation? So in today's world, oftentimes
00:05:20 --> 00:05:25 we have to be on screens for work. I do virtual
00:05:25 --> 00:05:29 therapy, so I'm on screens a lot. I do have a
00:05:29 --> 00:05:33 blue blocker on my screen. to limit the blue
00:05:33 --> 00:05:37 light exposure. But I would say, yes, it can
00:05:37 --> 00:05:41 become harmful. Even over a lot of time on Zoom,
00:05:41 --> 00:05:44 there's a delay, which can cause a little bit
00:05:44 --> 00:05:49 of stress, where I will see your body cues and
00:05:49 --> 00:05:52 your facial expressions, but the audio comes
00:05:52 --> 00:05:55 in a little bit delayed. So in that delay, my
00:05:55 --> 00:05:59 brain is scanning to see why isn't this congruent.
00:05:59 --> 00:06:02 And that can create some anxiety over hours and
00:06:02 --> 00:06:07 days. Thank you so much for explaining that,
00:06:07 --> 00:06:10 Dr. Weber. So you mentioned about blue screen
00:06:10 --> 00:06:12 a bit. Can you tell our audiences what actually
00:06:12 --> 00:06:16 blue screen is and what actually it does in terms
00:06:16 --> 00:06:19 of providing some support with screen viewing
00:06:19 --> 00:06:23 and things? Okay, I'm not the best to describe
00:06:23 --> 00:06:27 the biological effects of blue light, but it
00:06:27 --> 00:06:31 does help. What it does is it can stimulate a
00:06:31 --> 00:06:34 lot of dopamine to be released. And so if you
00:06:34 --> 00:06:37 have a lot of dopamine being released from your
00:06:37 --> 00:06:40 brain, at first it will cause you to be hyper
00:06:40 --> 00:06:45 -focused on the screen. Oh, okay. But then you
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 can have a dopamine crash, and it'll be harder
00:06:47 --> 00:06:50 for you to focus on other things in your life.
00:06:50 --> 00:06:53 And when you get off a long day of work or a
00:06:53 --> 00:06:56 screen, you can be more irritable with people
00:06:56 --> 00:07:00 in your... home life because of not having enough
00:07:00 --> 00:07:04 dopamine. Okay, that's very helpful to know.
00:07:04 --> 00:07:07 Thank you so much, Dr. Weber. So when we talk
00:07:07 --> 00:07:09 about screen time, there are different scenarios
00:07:09 --> 00:07:12 or situations where we have to use the screen.
00:07:12 --> 00:07:16 Sometimes that is for work purpose. Sometimes
00:07:16 --> 00:07:19 that is for leisure, but it's all connected to
00:07:19 --> 00:07:22 the screen somehow. So can I ask you in terms
00:07:22 --> 00:07:25 of screen time effect on mental health, what's
00:07:25 --> 00:07:29 the difference between necessary screen time
00:07:29 --> 00:07:32 and recreational screen time, and how do their
00:07:32 --> 00:07:39 effects differ on mental health? Sure. Okay,
00:07:39 --> 00:07:43 well, I would say that if it's possible to do
00:07:43 --> 00:07:47 more work even off screens, I have an educational
00:07:47 --> 00:07:50 consultant I work with. Her name is Dr. Elizabeth
00:07:50 --> 00:07:53 Hansen, and she recommends keeping kids off screen
00:07:53 --> 00:07:57 for work and school even, but the difference
00:07:57 --> 00:08:00 is that with just extensive time, there's a lot
00:08:00 --> 00:08:03 more. We can get recreation in a more embodied
00:08:03 --> 00:08:07 way. One issue I have with screen time for recreation
00:08:07 --> 00:08:12 is that it leads to sensory disintegration. Sensory
00:08:12 --> 00:08:16 disintegration, my eyes and my ears are on the
00:08:16 --> 00:08:22 screen, but my sense of touch, my smell and taste
00:08:22 --> 00:08:25 are in a different reality. This type of sensory
00:08:25 --> 00:08:29 disintegration can lead to stress and anxiety.
00:08:29 --> 00:08:33 In the mental health world, a tool that we have
00:08:33 --> 00:08:38 to help people manage anxiety is the 5, 4, 3,
00:08:38 --> 00:08:43 2, 1 exercise, where you look at five things
00:08:43 --> 00:08:46 you see, four things you hear, three things you
00:08:46 --> 00:08:50 touch, two things you smell, and one thing you
00:08:50 --> 00:08:54 taste. And by bringing all your senses to one
00:08:54 --> 00:08:57 point and a focus, it's supposed to calm a person
00:08:57 --> 00:09:01 down. But excessively being on screens, we're
00:09:01 --> 00:09:04 not able to do that. And it makes it harder to
00:09:04 --> 00:09:09 be in the present moment and grounded. There
00:09:09 --> 00:09:14 was a study by Sanga Lee in 2022 that showed
00:09:14 --> 00:09:17 that children in low -income houses spend more
00:09:17 --> 00:09:22 time on screen than other children. And in 2020,
00:09:22 --> 00:09:27 I went to a training with the California Psychological
00:09:27 --> 00:09:30 Association, and they said that children in low
00:09:30 --> 00:09:34 -income households will spend an average of two
00:09:34 --> 00:09:38 hours more on screens than children who are not
00:09:38 --> 00:09:41 in these low -income households. So it does become
00:09:41 --> 00:09:44 a class issue on mental health and class and
00:09:44 --> 00:09:51 excessive screen time. Okay. That's very interesting
00:09:51 --> 00:09:54 to know. And I really appreciate the knowledge
00:09:54 --> 00:09:57 that you shared about the 5 -4 -3 -2 -1 method.
00:09:57 --> 00:10:00 I haven't heard of that before. I have a follow
00:10:00 --> 00:10:03 -up question on that to you, Dr. Weber. For recreational
00:10:03 --> 00:10:06 time, we can encourage individuals to get away
00:10:06 --> 00:10:10 from screen and do something active other than
00:10:10 --> 00:10:14 being in the digital realm. For individuals who
00:10:14 --> 00:10:17 use screen for their work purpose, They use the
00:10:17 --> 00:10:19 screen for a prolonged period of time. We know
00:10:19 --> 00:10:21 it has different impacts on our brain, but we'll
00:10:21 --> 00:10:24 discuss that a bit later. But for the individuals
00:10:24 --> 00:10:27 who are using screen for the work purpose, what
00:10:27 --> 00:10:31 can actually they do? Reduce that time to have
00:10:31 --> 00:10:34 the impact of the screen on them to minimize
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 that impact. What can they do in that aspect?
00:10:38 --> 00:10:41 Sure. Yeah, they can take some breaks every.
00:10:42 --> 00:10:45 20 minutes, if possible, to look away from the
00:10:45 --> 00:10:48 screen. Just kind of look over and take your
00:10:48 --> 00:10:52 gaze away from the screen and maybe get up every
00:10:52 --> 00:10:55 hour and kind of move around. That can be helpful.
00:10:55 --> 00:10:58 On the back end, I would say if you work on a
00:10:58 --> 00:11:02 screen a lot, then when it comes to recreation,
00:11:02 --> 00:11:05 don't use the screen for recreation since you're
00:11:05 --> 00:11:08 already saturating your screen time with work.
00:11:09 --> 00:11:12 It's not always possible, though, to look away
00:11:12 --> 00:11:14 from the screen every 20 minutes. That's the
00:11:14 --> 00:11:17 problem. Some of the healthy habits don't really
00:11:17 --> 00:11:20 work in today's work world. Like, for example,
00:11:20 --> 00:11:23 if I'm giving a meeting and I'm participating
00:11:23 --> 00:11:26 in a meeting, I have to look like I'm engaged
00:11:26 --> 00:11:29 and giving eye contact. And I can't just look
00:11:29 --> 00:11:32 away every 20 minutes, right? It's just a fact.
00:11:32 --> 00:11:36 So it's a difficult situation. how to fit healthy
00:11:36 --> 00:11:39 habits into this new work and school environment.
00:11:39 --> 00:11:42 For example, I have clients who are executives
00:11:42 --> 00:11:47 and they will tell me that they're in five hours
00:11:47 --> 00:11:52 of Zoom meetings back to back and that's a work
00:11:52 --> 00:11:55 day. So I don't think that they can necessarily
00:11:55 --> 00:11:58 look away every 20 minutes from the call, but
00:11:58 --> 00:12:01 maybe they can between meetings leave a 10 minute
00:12:01 --> 00:12:06 buffer to do that. Okay. That's very helpful
00:12:06 --> 00:12:10 to know. Yeah. There is actually something that
00:12:10 --> 00:12:15 I wanted to talk about on the use of AI and mental
00:12:15 --> 00:12:17 health. Because more and more people are using
00:12:17 --> 00:12:22 AI for companionship, even for mental health
00:12:22 --> 00:12:26 benefits and therapy. I'm wary of it. So I wanted
00:12:26 --> 00:12:29 to speak about why I'm wary of it, if that's
00:12:29 --> 00:12:32 okay. Yes, for sure. Please go ahead, Dr. Rao.
00:12:34 --> 00:12:36 let's look at dialectical behavioral therapy
00:12:36 --> 00:12:40 it has this concept called wise mind and if you
00:12:40 --> 00:12:43 can imagine for a second wise mind is a venn
00:12:43 --> 00:12:48 diagram where one circle is your rational mind
00:12:48 --> 00:12:52 and the other circle is your emotional mind kind
00:12:52 --> 00:12:55 of marrying your left hemispheres of your brain
00:12:55 --> 00:12:58 and where these two circles intersect in the
00:12:58 --> 00:13:03 venn diagram this is where wisdom is so We know
00:13:03 --> 00:13:07 that AI does not have the capacity for wisdom
00:13:07 --> 00:13:10 because it's hyper rational, reasonable mind.
00:13:11 --> 00:13:16 So it's not balancing emotions with this rationality.
00:13:16 --> 00:13:19 So it's not leading to wisdom. So I think people
00:13:19 --> 00:13:24 may be extensively depending on it for mental
00:13:24 --> 00:13:26 health and guidance and companionship are walking
00:13:26 --> 00:13:32 on thin ice there. And also. And I'm in a pool
00:13:32 --> 00:13:34 from different schools of psychology. So that's
00:13:34 --> 00:13:37 dialectical behavioral therapy, where it says
00:13:37 --> 00:13:39 wisdom is this intersection between emotions
00:13:39 --> 00:13:43 and rational mind. And we know that values, AI
00:13:43 --> 00:13:46 doesn't have values, but values are not emotionally
00:13:46 --> 00:13:53 neutral. So our reliance on AI is going to lead
00:13:53 --> 00:13:56 to maybe this hyper rational sense, like the
00:13:56 --> 00:13:59 faculty of rationality becomes out of balance.
00:14:00 --> 00:14:04 It's no longer the middle path. In Buddhism,
00:14:04 --> 00:14:08 and even in the Islamic histories of mental health,
00:14:08 --> 00:14:11 Buddhism, they would walk the middle path. But
00:14:11 --> 00:14:14 in Islamic mental health, like in Iran, they
00:14:14 --> 00:14:18 had some scholars like Al -Ghazali and Abbasina
00:14:18 --> 00:14:21 that talked on psychology, and they would talk
00:14:21 --> 00:14:25 about balancing our faculties. The faculties
00:14:25 --> 00:14:27 that they talked about was a triangle of anger,
00:14:27 --> 00:14:31 appetites, and reason. And in the same way, we
00:14:31 --> 00:14:35 want to balance anger so that we don't have so
00:14:35 --> 00:14:38 much anger that we're reckless. And we also don't
00:14:38 --> 00:14:40 have so little anger that we're a coward. We
00:14:40 --> 00:14:43 want to balance it so we can be brave, right?
00:14:43 --> 00:14:46 In the same way with rationality and reason,
00:14:46 --> 00:14:50 we don't want to have so much reason, logic,
00:14:50 --> 00:14:56 cerebral over here, AI. We don't want to have
00:14:56 --> 00:14:59 too little either. We want to balance it so we
00:14:59 --> 00:15:02 have that wisdom that's hitting on dialectical
00:15:02 --> 00:15:06 behavioral therapy. We want to balance it. And
00:15:06 --> 00:15:11 even in Freud, in psychodynamic therapy, he will
00:15:11 --> 00:15:14 say intellectualization and rationalization are
00:15:14 --> 00:15:19 defense mechanisms. And we need defense mechanisms.
00:15:19 --> 00:15:22 They're the bark on a tree. If you take away
00:15:22 --> 00:15:27 the bark from the tree. the tree will catch diseases
00:15:27 --> 00:15:32 and it will die. But we want to have it in moderation
00:15:32 --> 00:15:36 and we want to be able to use other defense mechanisms
00:15:36 --> 00:15:41 and not just this hyper -rational direction that
00:15:41 --> 00:15:45 people are going with AI. And I think that this
00:15:45 --> 00:15:48 is also a way that mental health can be affected
00:15:48 --> 00:15:53 moving forward. That's wonderful. And thank you
00:15:53 --> 00:15:56 so much for explaining that. It's very important,
00:15:56 --> 00:15:59 I think, also to understand taking their own
00:15:59 --> 00:16:02 perception for mental health and well -being
00:16:02 --> 00:16:08 and completely not relying on AI. AI has wider
00:16:08 --> 00:16:11 impact on people as how things are being automated.
00:16:11 --> 00:16:14 And it's kind of a machine learning that's learning
00:16:14 --> 00:16:16 and feeding through our activities and then using
00:16:16 --> 00:16:21 that more wisely. If we do still use AIs for
00:16:21 --> 00:16:24 our mental health and other well -being, it's
00:16:24 --> 00:16:27 not always the fruitful. I prefer instead of
00:16:27 --> 00:16:29 an AI to talk to actual person to talk about
00:16:29 --> 00:16:32 my mental health and well -being and get advice
00:16:32 --> 00:16:35 from that and not depend on machine altogether.
00:16:35 --> 00:16:39 So that's just my perspective, but I really appreciate
00:16:39 --> 00:16:43 that context that you provide, Dr. Vapor. Can
00:16:43 --> 00:16:45 I ask you a question? We know excessive screen
00:16:45 --> 00:16:49 time has impact on our health. and mental well
00:16:49 --> 00:16:53 -being. So from your experience, what are the
00:16:53 --> 00:16:56 most common mental health consequences of excessive
00:16:56 --> 00:17:00 screen time and how do they affect emotional
00:17:00 --> 00:17:06 well -being? Sure. Well, I think that it's important
00:17:06 --> 00:17:10 to have goals in our life for emotional well
00:17:10 --> 00:17:13 -being. We need to be moving, have a sense of
00:17:13 --> 00:17:17 the future vision. grounded in the present and
00:17:17 --> 00:17:20 also when we have a vision of the future, it
00:17:20 --> 00:17:25 gives us hope, which can keep depression at bay.
00:17:25 --> 00:17:28 However, when people use excessive screen time
00:17:28 --> 00:17:33 and they get addicted to it, it takes away from
00:17:33 --> 00:17:35 their ability to have goals and to work towards
00:17:35 --> 00:17:39 the future, depleting hope. And I think this
00:17:39 --> 00:17:42 has emotional consequences. This is a really
00:17:42 --> 00:17:45 big topic, but there's also the whole A lot to
00:17:45 --> 00:17:49 say about social media and bullying. You could
00:17:49 --> 00:17:53 talk about people comparing their lives to influencers
00:17:53 --> 00:17:57 who are only posting good things. Young women
00:17:57 --> 00:18:02 with body issues because of social media. There's
00:18:02 --> 00:18:05 a lot more pitfalls that kids can fall into.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:08 When I was growing up, I didn't have to learn.
00:18:08 --> 00:18:11 Don't talk to strangers on the internet. Don't
00:18:11 --> 00:18:14 send personal information on the internet. Don't
00:18:14 --> 00:18:17 send photos of myself on the internet. You know,
00:18:17 --> 00:18:20 I didn't have to learn all of these things. It's
00:18:20 --> 00:18:22 a lot more complicated for young people now.
00:18:23 --> 00:18:26 And at our time, there wasn't the internet that
00:18:26 --> 00:18:29 much of accessible or it didn't have that functionalities
00:18:29 --> 00:18:33 that the current generation actually has access
00:18:33 --> 00:18:36 to, especially in terms of social media. It's
00:18:36 --> 00:18:38 a great tool, I can say, but it's a very complex
00:18:38 --> 00:18:41 tool where they bring people together. And sometimes
00:18:41 --> 00:18:44 that is good, but oftentimes it might not be
00:18:44 --> 00:18:47 good because you're then getting connected with
00:18:47 --> 00:18:50 people who you think is better, but maybe they're
00:18:50 --> 00:18:53 impersonating a character in social media, which
00:18:53 --> 00:18:56 they are not in real life. So there is this complexity
00:18:56 --> 00:18:59 that comes in that didn't happen with our generation.
00:19:05 --> 00:19:09 next generation and how we can actually, what
00:19:09 --> 00:19:11 we can do ourselves to make it more better for
00:19:11 --> 00:19:16 them. I was just going to say that with social
00:19:16 --> 00:19:21 media, social media companies have some of, they
00:19:21 --> 00:19:23 try to recruit top talent, some of the smartest
00:19:23 --> 00:19:26 people in the world to work on the issue of how
00:19:26 --> 00:19:30 to get more people on these apps. So I feel people's
00:19:30 --> 00:19:32 mental states are being exploited for economic
00:19:32 --> 00:19:36 purposes. And that should be taken into consideration
00:19:36 --> 00:19:41 as well. Right. Indeed. I agree with you, Dr.
00:19:41 --> 00:19:44 Weber. Can I ask you this question in a bit detail?
00:19:44 --> 00:19:49 We know that the prolonged screen time has impact
00:19:49 --> 00:19:51 on our brain, but for further understanding of
00:19:51 --> 00:19:54 our audiences, can you explain to them how does
00:19:54 --> 00:19:57 prolonged screen use impact the brain function,
00:19:57 --> 00:20:01 attention span, and impulse control, particularly
00:20:01 --> 00:20:04 in children? adolescents who use them the most?
00:20:07 --> 00:20:11 Sure. So I mentioned it a little bit earlier.
00:20:11 --> 00:20:15 I talked about dopamine and how being on screens
00:20:15 --> 00:20:18 depletes dopamine. When you have this depletion
00:20:18 --> 00:20:21 of dopamine, dopamine is what you need to pay
00:20:21 --> 00:20:24 attention and you need to be able to focus and
00:20:24 --> 00:20:29 have impulse control. So if you don't have dopamine
00:20:29 --> 00:20:32 because it's just getting depleted on screens,
00:20:32 --> 00:20:35 then it's going to be very hard for children
00:20:35 --> 00:20:42 to focus and do well in school. So, yeah, it
00:20:42 --> 00:20:45 does affect children and adolescents this way.
00:20:45 --> 00:20:49 When I worked in the Palo Alto Unified School
00:20:49 --> 00:20:52 District as a counselor and my interviews with
00:20:52 --> 00:20:56 parents, I used to ask them what time policies
00:20:56 --> 00:21:00 were. For their children. And there is, let's
00:21:00 --> 00:21:04 say three groups that I would see. There's the
00:21:04 --> 00:21:08 group that doesn't give any limits on screen
00:21:08 --> 00:21:12 time to the children. And there's the group that
00:21:12 --> 00:21:15 would say, okay, you can have unlimited on the
00:21:15 --> 00:21:18 weekend. Then there's a group that would say,
00:21:18 --> 00:21:22 okay, one hour a day or 30 minutes a day. But
00:21:22 --> 00:21:26 if you look at the families that. were trying
00:21:26 --> 00:21:30 to track their children to college and lofty
00:21:30 --> 00:21:33 goals for their children. These families usually
00:21:33 --> 00:21:37 restrict screen time for their children because
00:21:37 --> 00:21:40 they, it just taking away, there's six domains
00:21:40 --> 00:21:45 that children have to succeed in to get into
00:21:45 --> 00:21:49 a good university. And if you're, let's say hours
00:21:49 --> 00:21:53 on a screen in the. California Psychological
00:21:53 --> 00:21:55 Association training I went to, they said that
00:21:55 --> 00:21:58 children are spending five to seven hours on
00:21:58 --> 00:22:02 screens a day. That's five hours. They're not
00:22:02 --> 00:22:06 working and focusing on their vision for their
00:22:06 --> 00:22:09 life. They're just sort of entertaining themselves.
00:22:10 --> 00:22:13 I don't even think that that entertainment is
00:22:13 --> 00:22:17 good for character development. Not at all. Yeah,
00:22:17 --> 00:22:22 I agree with you, Dr. Weber. How you did mention
00:22:22 --> 00:22:26 about character development, and I think that
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 is one thing I also want to mention to everybody.
00:22:28 --> 00:22:31 We see at this time, even when we are growing
00:22:31 --> 00:22:35 our kids up and when they are very young, suppose
00:22:35 --> 00:22:38 at the age of even one or one and a half, two,
00:22:39 --> 00:22:42 we give an iPad to them. And if you want to watch
00:22:42 --> 00:22:45 a cartoon, you have to eat. If you want to watch
00:22:45 --> 00:22:47 the cartoon, you have to do this chore or take
00:22:47 --> 00:22:50 care of yourself. I think at some point, giving
00:22:50 --> 00:22:53 a screen to such a little person or a little
00:22:53 --> 00:22:56 aged kid is, I don't think it's kind of appropriate.
00:22:56 --> 00:22:59 Sometimes it's helpful for them to learn things
00:22:59 --> 00:23:02 and to interact. They do in TV, watching cartoons,
00:23:02 --> 00:23:05 but personal, I feel giving them an iPad and
00:23:05 --> 00:23:09 they actually get attached to it. And at certain
00:23:09 --> 00:23:12 points I've seen in my professional career that
00:23:12 --> 00:23:15 children who are given iPad at a very little
00:23:15 --> 00:23:19 age. They tend to get stuck to it and they can't
00:23:19 --> 00:23:22 even want to do other things without seeing the
00:23:22 --> 00:23:25 iPad or without having to carrying it. I personally
00:23:25 --> 00:23:27 feel that's not a healthy situation. And just
00:23:27 --> 00:23:30 like you mentioned that using screen time for
00:23:30 --> 00:23:35 little ones to have them do the work or to grow
00:23:35 --> 00:23:37 into a better person. I don't think that actually
00:23:37 --> 00:23:41 always work. We can give them the screen at some
00:23:41 --> 00:23:45 point, but as parents, we have to make. that
00:23:45 --> 00:23:47 time certain when they can use the screen or
00:23:47 --> 00:23:49 when they cannot, just to make it a bit more
00:23:49 --> 00:23:54 healthy. Sure. Yeah, this screen has become a
00:23:54 --> 00:23:59 type of babysitter for children. Parents are,
00:23:59 --> 00:24:02 I mean, it didn't used to be that we just had
00:24:02 --> 00:24:04 the nuclear family that had to raise children.
00:24:04 --> 00:24:06 It used to be that there was extended relatives
00:24:06 --> 00:24:10 and family members, like traditional communities
00:24:10 --> 00:24:14 where they were helping with child care. So now
00:24:14 --> 00:24:17 there's not that. So I'm not trying to shame
00:24:17 --> 00:24:20 parents because I understand that they just don't
00:24:20 --> 00:24:23 have the resources that they used to have. But
00:24:23 --> 00:24:27 definitely, it's not good to give children iPads
00:24:27 --> 00:24:30 and screens just to have some quiet moments or,
00:24:30 --> 00:24:33 for example, the convenience of the people around
00:24:33 --> 00:24:36 you at the restaurant. I was at your children's
00:24:36 --> 00:24:40 expense. I think that if a child can't sit with
00:24:40 --> 00:24:43 discomfort and the parents can't tolerate some
00:24:43 --> 00:24:47 discomfort and emotionality from the child, you
00:24:47 --> 00:24:49 know, every time the child has some discomfort
00:24:49 --> 00:24:52 or boredom, we pull creativity from boredom.
00:24:52 --> 00:24:55 And if so, we can never be bored. And the children
00:24:55 --> 00:24:59 from one year old is given an iPad. Every time
00:24:59 --> 00:25:02 they start to get bored in funds, they're not
00:25:02 --> 00:25:05 going to ever learn this as well. They'll learn
00:25:05 --> 00:25:08 maybe some, but not as well. Regulations that
00:25:08 --> 00:25:12 come up with boredom. And it's on the other end
00:25:12 --> 00:25:15 of regulating those emotions is we can be creative.
00:25:15 --> 00:25:18 We can build things. And yeah, I think that's
00:25:18 --> 00:25:21 a good point that you brought up. The American
00:25:21 --> 00:25:27 Pediatric Association has limits on screen time
00:25:27 --> 00:25:31 for children. And I think that. In the future,
00:25:31 --> 00:25:34 I would like to see the American Psychological
00:25:34 --> 00:25:38 Association also coming up with limits. But at
00:25:38 --> 00:25:40 the moment, there's not any limits that the American
00:25:40 --> 00:25:45 Psychological Association has come up with. I
00:25:45 --> 00:25:47 think for the pediatric association, it might
00:25:47 --> 00:25:52 be one hour a day or something like that. One
00:25:52 --> 00:25:55 thing we're discussing today over and over again
00:25:55 --> 00:25:58 is why children or why even young adults and
00:25:58 --> 00:26:02 even people in our age, are so much attracted
00:26:02 --> 00:26:05 to screen, watching screen in different forms
00:26:05 --> 00:26:08 and format. What do you think, what makes technology
00:26:08 --> 00:26:12 so addictive? And how can individuals recognize
00:26:12 --> 00:26:19 the signs of this dependency on technology? Sure.
00:26:19 --> 00:26:24 I think that technology is addictive for different
00:26:24 --> 00:26:30 reasons. Like for, let's say, boys who not all...
00:26:30 --> 00:26:33 Boys play more video games than girls. Some girls
00:26:33 --> 00:26:36 play more video than boys. But let's just talk
00:26:36 --> 00:26:39 about video games for a second. It gives boys
00:26:39 --> 00:26:45 a sense of mastery, like instant mastery, being
00:26:45 --> 00:26:49 powerful. And I think that that is addictive
00:26:49 --> 00:26:54 and seductive for young boys who maybe are having
00:26:54 --> 00:26:57 a hard time with sense of self through adolescence
00:26:57 --> 00:27:01 or something like that. mastery and power in
00:27:01 --> 00:27:05 this virtual world for girls who are more likely
00:27:05 --> 00:27:08 to be on social media and again these are just
00:27:08 --> 00:27:11 general themes it's not there's overlap of course
00:27:11 --> 00:27:14 but being able to get instant gratification of
00:27:14 --> 00:27:18 belonging or being appreciated and valued i think
00:27:18 --> 00:27:21 it gives a feel -good moment and so it becomes
00:27:21 --> 00:27:26 addictive to have that recognizing the science
00:27:26 --> 00:27:30 of technology dependence Well, one big sign is
00:27:30 --> 00:27:34 that it's impairing their academic and social
00:27:34 --> 00:27:38 functioning or their responsibilities at home.
00:27:38 --> 00:27:42 Are they showering? Are they doing chores? Are
00:27:42 --> 00:27:45 they still engaging with their friends in person?
00:27:45 --> 00:27:49 Are they pushing themselves academically or in
00:27:49 --> 00:27:54 sports? So when you start to see that the functionality
00:27:54 --> 00:27:56 in their life is going down, that's a good sign
00:27:56 --> 00:28:00 that there is. tech dependency so meltdown when
00:28:00 --> 00:28:04 the technology is taken away i have limits for
00:28:04 --> 00:28:09 my children on tech and even with that i have
00:28:09 --> 00:28:12 this limit when i take the ipad time is up for
00:28:12 --> 00:28:16 my kid on his device and i take it away he tries
00:28:16 --> 00:28:20 to negotiate for more time and he gets upset
00:28:20 --> 00:28:23 i'm pretty good when i won't negotiate it's non
00:28:23 --> 00:28:28 -negotiable um but it I don't have these really
00:28:28 --> 00:28:32 solid limits in place. I have seen that children
00:28:32 --> 00:28:38 will have meltdowns. Yeah, indeed they have.
00:28:40 --> 00:28:44 Now that I think is a sign of addiction. We see
00:28:44 --> 00:28:49 anxiety with adults even. Even I have had this
00:28:49 --> 00:28:52 anxiety where I can't find my phone for a few
00:28:52 --> 00:28:55 minutes. Where is my phone? And it creates some
00:28:55 --> 00:28:57 anxiety. Or I left the house and I don't have
00:28:57 --> 00:29:00 my phone or maybe I left it somewhere and there's
00:29:00 --> 00:29:05 that anxiety. So I think that it's really a pandemic
00:29:05 --> 00:29:12 of sorts and affecting all types of people. Indeed,
00:29:13 --> 00:29:15 Dr. Weber. And I think one of the reasons that
00:29:15 --> 00:29:19 you brought up that using devices and technology
00:29:19 --> 00:29:22 in our adult life as ourselves, I think is because
00:29:22 --> 00:29:26 everything is kind of adapting to digital. right
00:29:26 --> 00:29:29 now people used to write letters now email is
00:29:29 --> 00:29:33 a constant part of our life we used to use pen
00:29:33 --> 00:29:36 and paper in our work before but we are now using
00:29:36 --> 00:29:41 laptops offices are giving you laptops desktops
00:29:41 --> 00:29:44 everything is not digital and even there isn't
00:29:44 --> 00:29:48 a way you cannot go into the past you cannot
00:29:48 --> 00:29:51 Do the pen and paper things and do the facts
00:29:51 --> 00:29:53 because it's much time consuming. So you have
00:29:53 --> 00:29:56 to stay active. You have to do a lot of things
00:29:56 --> 00:29:58 in a short amount of time, which is only achievable
00:29:58 --> 00:30:01 by digital means. And you have to be connected
00:30:01 --> 00:30:05 into the online world for clients to communicate
00:30:05 --> 00:30:08 or people to work with. I see this as a one way
00:30:08 --> 00:30:11 road to digital growth. And that is actually
00:30:11 --> 00:30:15 leading us to have a lot of influence or a lot
00:30:15 --> 00:30:17 of. connection with digital stuff that's the
00:30:17 --> 00:30:19 reason why you mentioned we cannot stay with
00:30:19 --> 00:30:22 our phone for a few minutes but we cannot stay
00:30:22 --> 00:30:26 without any sorts of digital stuffs in within
00:30:26 --> 00:30:29 our life even for an hour i'm sure if someone
00:30:29 --> 00:30:32 is get isolated in her room for 24 hours without
00:30:32 --> 00:30:35 any digital stuff that actually have a wave effect
00:30:35 --> 00:30:37 on their mental health and we have seen youtubers
00:30:37 --> 00:30:41 doing that and it's not an easy thing to do so
00:30:41 --> 00:30:44 it just indicates how much dependent we are at
00:30:44 --> 00:30:48 now with this digital era. Can I ask you one
00:30:48 --> 00:30:50 question for the benefit of our audiences? What
00:30:50 --> 00:30:53 are some of the practical strategies to reduce
00:30:53 --> 00:30:56 screen time and develop a healthier digital habits
00:30:56 --> 00:31:01 without feeling deprived? Yeah, great question.
00:31:02 --> 00:31:06 So in my trainings, I've tried to focus on my
00:31:06 --> 00:31:08 continuing education training on this topic.
00:31:08 --> 00:31:12 They're saying cognitive behavioral therapy is
00:31:12 --> 00:31:17 a strategy. It's being talked about to reduce
00:31:17 --> 00:31:23 screen time. Root therapy for people who are
00:31:23 --> 00:31:27 addicted to technology is an effective treatment.
00:31:28 --> 00:31:30 You get to hear other people's stories and stuff
00:31:30 --> 00:31:33 like that. And I think you're not alone in this.
00:31:33 --> 00:31:37 Well, another thing that I think is really helpful
00:31:37 --> 00:31:40 is just spending time in nature because it's
00:31:40 --> 00:31:44 sort of an eco -therapy. And spending time in
00:31:44 --> 00:31:48 nature is good because when we're on screens,
00:31:49 --> 00:31:53 we have a very focused vision. Our perspective
00:31:53 --> 00:31:57 becomes very focused, very on screen. When we
00:31:57 --> 00:31:59 go out in nature, our vision and perspective
00:31:59 --> 00:32:02 becomes peripheral, right? We have to think like,
00:32:03 --> 00:32:06 okay, who are the people around us? Are there
00:32:06 --> 00:32:09 any mountain lion? We have to be aware. Predators
00:32:09 --> 00:32:12 that might be out there. It expands our vision
00:32:12 --> 00:32:16 and we get to see that we have a small but meaningful
00:32:16 --> 00:32:21 role in the order of the universe. But when we're
00:32:21 --> 00:32:24 on screen, it's very egocentric. Like it's me
00:32:24 --> 00:32:27 and who I'm chatting with and what they're responding
00:32:27 --> 00:32:30 or how I'm in the game or these emails become
00:32:30 --> 00:32:33 very me -centric. So I would say as an entity
00:32:33 --> 00:32:38 that going out into nature and just tapping into
00:32:38 --> 00:32:43 this. Peripheral vision and checking into our
00:32:43 --> 00:32:45 small but meaningful place in the order of things
00:32:45 --> 00:32:50 can help out with our mental health as well.
00:32:51 --> 00:32:56 On this point, I would say that when we can expand
00:32:56 --> 00:32:59 our vision and it's not just super focused on
00:32:59 --> 00:33:02 one thing, it is more peripheral and it's zooming
00:33:02 --> 00:33:06 out to see the bigger picture. This kind of generalist
00:33:06 --> 00:33:09 perspective helps us connect the dots. between
00:33:09 --> 00:33:12 different disciplines, different concepts of
00:33:12 --> 00:33:17 life, different facets of life. And until we
00:33:17 --> 00:33:21 can widen our perspective, it's hard to wire
00:33:21 --> 00:33:27 our brain to connect these dots that way. That's
00:33:27 --> 00:33:30 very valuable advice. And thank you so much,
00:33:30 --> 00:33:34 Dr. Weber, for sharing that. For the benefit
00:33:34 --> 00:33:36 of our audiences, I'm really sure my audience
00:33:36 --> 00:33:40 has got that. That's very helpful information.
00:33:40 --> 00:33:43 Can I ask you, Dr. Weber, I know you are a clinical
00:33:43 --> 00:33:46 psychologist and you do private practice. So
00:33:46 --> 00:33:50 how do my audiences can get in touch with you?
00:33:50 --> 00:33:54 And what type of support do you provide in terms
00:33:54 --> 00:33:57 of psychological and mental well -being for your
00:33:57 --> 00:34:01 clients? Sure. Thank you. So I have a private
00:34:01 --> 00:34:04 practice. It's mostly filled up. I do have people
00:34:04 --> 00:34:08 drop off and then I'm able to bring in new. clients.
00:34:08 --> 00:34:13 I would say look on my website, www .doctorazadeweber
00:34:13 --> 00:34:18 .com. I am building groups right now in an effort
00:34:18 --> 00:34:21 to serve more people because my individual practice
00:34:21 --> 00:34:25 is usually full. I am offering two groups, Thrives
00:34:25 --> 00:34:28 Together, which talks about social and emotional
00:34:28 --> 00:34:32 skills, confidence building. And I'm also doing
00:34:32 --> 00:34:38 a group called Rise and Root. which focuses on
00:34:38 --> 00:34:44 yoga, vagus nerve reset exercises, and visualization
00:34:44 --> 00:34:48 techniques. So I do that as well. I am also a
00:34:48 --> 00:34:52 certified yoga instructor. So in addition to
00:34:52 --> 00:34:55 clinical psychology, I'm kind of merging those
00:34:55 --> 00:35:00 in that. So people in those, they can reach out
00:35:00 --> 00:35:04 to me on my website. Thank you so much, Dr. Weber,
00:35:04 --> 00:35:08 for sharing that. You have a lot of expertise
00:35:08 --> 00:35:11 in many different fields. So I really hope our
00:35:11 --> 00:35:13 audiences would find value to whatever they're
00:35:13 --> 00:35:17 looking for with that support. And I really encourage
00:35:17 --> 00:35:25 your audiences to seek out at dradehweber .com
00:35:25 --> 00:35:28 to see support on the group settings. And if
00:35:28 --> 00:35:31 you do have any questions for Dr. Weber, you
00:35:31 --> 00:35:34 can also connect with her through the website.
00:35:34 --> 00:35:38 dr azadeh weber but also if you go to our website
00:35:38 --> 00:35:42 activeaction .fm if you search dr weber's name
00:35:42 --> 00:35:46 azadeh dash weber a -z -a -d -e -h dash weber
00:35:46 --> 00:35:50 you will see her web page there so it has information
00:35:50 --> 00:35:54 about her bio but also links to all our socials
00:35:54 --> 00:35:57 so you can indeed get in touch with her in that
00:35:57 --> 00:36:01 way if you want Apart from that, Dr. Weber, I
00:36:01 --> 00:36:04 really appreciate you coming to this podcast
00:36:04 --> 00:36:07 today and sharing your words of wisdom about
00:36:07 --> 00:36:09 screen time and mental health and well -being
00:36:09 --> 00:36:14 with our audiences. My pleasure. I enjoyed being
00:36:14 --> 00:36:18 here. Thank you, Dr. Nizgi, for the conversation.
00:36:18 --> 00:36:22 I enjoyed it and the opportunity to talk on a
00:36:22 --> 00:36:27 topic I am passionate about. Sure. We are appreciative
00:36:27 --> 00:36:30 of having you as well. Take care. We'll keep
00:36:30 --> 00:36:33 in touch and hope to see you in one of our future
00:36:33 --> 00:36:37 episodes as well. Dear listeners, we were talking
00:36:37 --> 00:36:40 with our wonderful guest, Dr. Weber, today on
00:36:40 --> 00:36:43 the topic of screen time and its effect and impact
00:36:43 --> 00:36:46 on mental health. We really did get to learn
00:36:46 --> 00:36:49 a lot about the impact of what screen time has
00:36:49 --> 00:36:53 on different ages of individuals, even if they
00:36:53 --> 00:36:56 are young kids or even adults. and some very,
00:36:56 --> 00:36:59 very helpful practical tips and tricks on how
00:36:59 --> 00:37:03 you can reduce screen times and use that to your
00:37:03 --> 00:37:05 benefit. Thank you so much for joining us into
00:37:05 --> 00:37:07 this podcast. I hope you found this helpful.
00:37:08 --> 00:37:11 If you did, please feel free to share this with
00:37:11 --> 00:37:14 your friends and family or anyone you think might
00:37:14 --> 00:37:17 benefit from the discussion that we had today.
00:37:17 --> 00:37:20 And finally, if you do find value in our content,
00:37:20 --> 00:37:23 don't forget to provide us a tip in our virtual
00:37:23 --> 00:37:30 tip jar at www .activeaction .fm. We'll be back
00:37:30 --> 00:37:33 with you again next week with another episode.
00:37:33 --> 00:37:37 Until then, stay positive, stay active, and take
00:37:37 --> 00:37:46 action. Take care, everyone. Thank you for joining
00:37:46 --> 00:37:48 us on the Active Action Podcast at activeaction
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How Excessive Screen Time Impacts Mental Health - with Dr. Azadeh Weber | Epi.30

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