Here is the complete transcript of the podcast
Happy Monday morning to you. Welcome back to Success with Srini. Today on the podcast, I’m answering a question. It’s an interesting one, because this is something that a lot of people are going through, and I also at some point went through it myself. So Srini I’ve been trying to ask this question for a while do not know why I waited this long. My 12-year-old is spending a lot of time on gadgets. He started playing video games very early on. And in the last year or so it has become worse, he spends a lot of time on his iPhone now. By all accounts, he is addicted and worried about his eyes. Would hypnosis help in making him quit this? Okay, that’s the question. See, when you said by all counts, he is addicted, I think you have already, you have already done your research.
So there are different ways I can answer this question. But this is not something new. And you are not alone. There are a lot of people who are going through this. And there is a lot of help. So let me really answer the last part of this question, which is would nurses help in making him quit this? A yes or no? Yes or no, in the sense is he is 12 years, all you said is, you know, for all practical reasons, he’s already 13. He’s already the teenager, almost not by literally going by the days, but he’s already there. So hypnosis helps people who are willing to make a change. And they are willing to participate in the change process. So it’s very difficult to make somebody quit a habit when they do not agree with the fact that they are already addicted to something. So that’s why alcoholics never quit alcohol, because they don’t agree that they’re alcoholic, very hard. So the change has to come with them. So only 13 If you give me five more years, this problem is going to go away on its own. But that’s not why you asked this question. So let’s talk about what might have caused this problem. I think primarily this happens, and this is what I’ve seen the kid is bonding with something else. So that there is some lack of time or some lack, of engagement from a parent’s standpoint, at some point in your child’s life, that’s one angle.
The other angle is that the child might be mimicking what the parents are already doing in the house. And most of the time that’s the case, that means you’re trying to you’re scared to do something that you otherwise yourself are not doing. So that’s a possibility, too. And you said, you know, I’m worried about his eyes. On this end, as I’m trying to answer your question, I’m worried about many other things. And I’m also primarily worried about one other thing, which is something that I think has happened to me. So back in India, when I was right around 10, or 11, I think I was 12 years old when TV started becoming very big in India, it started like really big going mainstream. And that was the time when I think I got addicted to watching TV, even though it used to come only for three hours in the evening. But it was coming at a time when I was doing. I was supposed to be studying and doing my homework and all that. And years later, when I tried to understand knowing what I know now about self-improvement and the concepts of personal development and all that. And I’m trying to focus on my efficiency, my productivity, and all that. I’m starting to realize that my processing, my planning, and my focus got compromised at an earlier age. And if I trace back, and I look at my grades and my schools, and my performance, I somehow go back to the time when PV started becoming mainstream in India when I was growing up. And I think I lost some precious time there. So what has happened is my cognition got impacted.
So case in point, you said you’re worried about his eyes. I’m worried about his cognition. And that is why personally now knowing what I know I don’t spend a lot of time watching TV or in an activity that otherwise will make me an addict. No activity should make me an addict. Sometimes people get addicted to common things. So nothing should dominate the mind. Other than that which you want the mind to dominate, you want something your mind should do, your mind should do that you shouldn’t be subservient to your mind. So there are some therapies available. There are some, and as a family, I recommend that you participate in some therapy. And stop this from becoming a bigger problem, because I think you’re already thinking in lines of therapy, otherwise, you shouldn’t have asked, and you would not have asked me about hypnosis. Yes, hypnosis works. It could work provided the whole family comes together into a more collective therapy. This is not an isolated case where a kid has fallen into a bad habit. That’s not the case. That’s not how I see it. At least the way I’m reading this question. I hope answered your question.
So yes, you should try hypnotherapy, you should try psychotherapy, you should go to experts who specialize in helping kids quit. These addictions are these kinds of addictions. If you do not address this sooner, then by the time your kid starts to discover himself or herself, there are some other secondary habits that could also develop as a result of this. So there’s a lot at stake at this point. And the biggest thing that you should be worried about is, is about the cognitive abilities getting impacted as a result of this. I hope I answered your question. And I’m going to stop here. I hope I did. I did. If I did, let me know.
And again, if you have a question, as a listener of this podcast, you have a question for me, by all means, please text me at 888-818-0404 You can always email me at srini@saripalli.com. But texting is much better. And that’s all for now. I’ll talk to you at least tomorrow. Keep listening!