NEWS

Lifestyles take toll on families

A growing number of children and teenagers are requesting mental support services due to pressure put on families by modern lifestyles that act as a block to communication, experts said yesterday. The Association for the Psychosocial Health of Children and Adolescents (APHCA) said that one in two children that call their phone help line say they cannot communicate with their parents, while around 40 percent of adults call for help in handling a child’s behavior. The service received 4,440 calls in March, of which it was in a position to respond to only half, due to low staff numbers. «The time parents spend with children is less due to work commitments. Even when the parents are home, they spend little time with their children. Normally, the children are in front of a computer while the parents are in front of the television,» Associate Professor of Child Psychiatry Ioannis Tsiantis told Kathimerini. «Even the family meals on weekends, which provide an excellent opportunity for communication, are held quietly in front of the television,» he added.

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