Last week, the Wall Street Journal published a front-page article titled, Facebook Knows Instagram is Toxic for Teen Girls, Company Documents Show. The eye-opening piece uncovers some of Facebook’s own internal research, showing the damaging effects Instagram has on teens’ mental health. In this blog, we offer five simple ways to help your kids deal with social media pressure.

We recently chatted with a mom who has an adopted son from foster care. Due to past trauma, she explained that he could experience things differently…one of those things is video games. The moment we heard her story, we wanted to know more and understand how the START community could help by raising awareness.

Recently, one of our Screen Sanity parents contacted us to seek advice on how to handle school-issued devices in her family’s home. With the fall season in full swing, we thought it timely to share our feedback in hopes of helping others who are sending kids back to school with more technology than ever.

When your kids know they have you by their side and can come to you no matter the situation they run into online, it creates an ongoing conversation and a safe space for them. The truth is our kids need a place to come to when they do mess up, because they will mess up.

It takes an incredibly brave parent to share about their challenges. Instead of putting on their blinders to protect their ego, they face the truth in order to help protect other children. This story is from one such mother, Ashley, who shared her story with START —so others might not go through the pain she has been through. Thank you, Ashley. Your courage and vulnerability are such a gift.

When we establish device-free zones, we develop lifelong habits that foster our kids’ mental health. And when the whole community is on board, it is a game-changer. FOMO goes down, sleep goes up, and risky behaviors aren’t as tempting. Though there might be pushback at first, they’ll feel relieved without the pressure to always be “on.”

When Cierra Karson found her preschool daughter saying her daily affirmations in the mirror, it made her cry happy tears, because she knew that one day, this little girl would have the confidence she needs to navigate the challenges she will face in the social media world. Read along as Cierra shares why and how this young family makes this practice a part of their everyday routine.

Max Stossel is the Youth + Education Advisor for The Center for Humane Technology—the organization behind Netflix’s documentary, The Social Dilemma. In this conversation, we get to pick his brain about how to talk to our kids about the “secret sauce” tech companies build into devices and apps to keep us hooked on our screens.

Angie Daniels is the Program Manager for The Hope Center on the east side of Kansas City, Missouri. There, she works to serve kids in an urban community in the heart of the city. From Pre-K to High School, they work to provide a supportive, family-like atmosphere for kids in this urban community—and phone-free zones are a key part of their culture. Join us as we gather wisdom from this amazing leader and mother of five kids who grew up in the smartphone revolution.

When it comes to the teen phenomenon of nude-texting, “just say no” might not be an adequate strategy. It’s important to help your child plan exactly how they will respond when they get asked for a nude. Here are some creative ideas!