Productions warn parents about the excessive use of technological devices in adolescence

Nowadays, technology is already part of people’s lives. In many cases, the tool becomes a family member, something that could not happen, but unfortunately, it ends up becoming a nightmare for many. What was to add in a positive and innovative way, everyday life ends up in social isolation, anxiety attacks, family fights and other factors that affect the user and people close to him.

With an eye on events, some soap operas and films are approaching the theme as a warning to family and friends — “Travessia”, “Poliana Moça” and “Megan” shed light on the problem.

“Online games can be a path to the future, even to build a career. So when approaching digital natives with the expressions ‘playing won’t get you anywhere’ or ‘don’t waste your time with it’, they end up not being so assertive when it comes to imposing the limits to play. A warning for many families who, in most cases, are afraid to approach teenagers. I’ve heard statements from young people when their parents tried to limit their playing time, who said they would kill themselves if they couldn’t play. At the very least, very painful and complicated, because how can we know the reality behind this statement?”, asks therapist Wanessa Moreira.

The character Theo, from the soap opera “Travessia”, shown on Rede Globo, played by the actor Ricardo Silvahas been causing many reactions from viewers, a fact that until then, many parents did not know how to deal with it and now with the theme shown on national television they are looking for help, as they have similar cases at home.

The character is addicted to video games, closing himself in his virtual universe, leaving behind his family and social relationships, affecting not only his health, but also that of his family members. Excessive addiction to technology (cell phone, internet, games) has been classified as a disease since January 2022 by the World Health Organization (WHO).

“The limit cannot be disconnecting the computer — it is necessary to build with the teenager a new path of interest. Take to a sport accompanied by a professional preferably who has a good connection with young people at this stage — to be attractive. Therapy and psychiatric follow-up are often necessary to reduce the anxiety generated by the game itself. Family exercises can be a good alternative for ‘unplugging’ from the internet”, adds Wanessa Moreira.

After leaving the virtual world and staying in touch with nature, Theo has an abstinence crisis, causing his parents to seek help immediately, as the teenager, in many cases, becomes aggressive due to having his technological connection interrupted. Dependence begins to affect school development, generating serious problems.

The character Benicio, from the children’s plot “Poliana Moça”, played by the actor Vinicius Siqueira, has been going through something similar, but which has raised the alarm for parents to be aware of the excessive use of cell phones — teenagers live on their social networks, but when they receive several nasty comments on their posts, they feel obliged to respond to one to one, leaving his social life aside to focus on the virtual world. In the soap opera, friends try to help, so that he does not fall into the cybernetic trap, warning the boy’s mother about the fact.

“I accompanied a young woman who was ‘stuck’ in a level of the game that she needed to go through an abyss. She trained every character in the game to get stronger and be able to pass the obstacle. In therapy, I was able to make a connection with the moment she was living in her life — in this case, a huge professional debt, which made it difficult to pose this question to the father who paid her expenses, hence this abyss of not knowing what what to do with your future from that moment on. While she was training the characters, unconsciously she was trying to strengthen herself inside her mind to deal with her own personal abyss”, says the therapist.

In the feature film “Megan”, which was recently showing in theaters, it tells the story of a doll made through artificial intelligence, which serves to meet the emotional needs of children, becoming their true friend. The creator of the toy presents it to her niece, as she does not have time to play, talk and interact with the child, causing her to isolate herself in her parallel universe, becoming a sad human being, which can generate various psychological problems.

There are countless alerts that entertainment is offering the population so that the excessive use of technological devices is controlled and used responsibly, so that this generation grows up in a healthy and conscious way.

“The therapy and the fact of observing exactly what is calling attention can be productive for the teenager to realize what is causing that difficulty and dependence on the device”, concludes Wanessa Moreira.