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Everyone around a child has a part to play. Choose the one that fits you.
Why waiting can actually be a good thing
We get it. When it feels like everyone else has a smartphone or is on social media, being told to wait can feel pretty unfair. It can feel like you're the one missing out.
But there's another side to it that doesn't get talked about enough.
Young people who spend less time on social media and have less unrestricted access to the internet tend to report better sleep and wellbeing, and fewer difficulties with things like anxiety and low mood. And that makes sense. Your brain gets a break from constantly checking, scrolling, comparing, replying and wondering what everyone else is doing.
You get more time to sleep properly. More headspace for school, sport, music, friends or whatever you're into. And when you're with your friends, you can actually be with them, rather than half of everyone being somewhere else on their phone.
Waiting isn't about adults thinking smartphones are bad or trying to punish you. It's about giving you a little more time before something pretty powerful gets access to so much of your attention.
And when you do get one, you might actually be in a better position to decide how you want to use it, rather than letting it decide for you.
There's a lot more to life than a feed
This might sound like something an adult would say, but some of the best parts of being a teenager happen when nobody is recording them.
Playing sport. Swimming in the sea. Music. Drama. Going to the beach. Cycling somewhere with your friends. Reading on the train. Sitting around talking rubbish and laughing until your stomach hurts.
And living in Skerries, you have a lot of that right on your doorstep.
A smartphone will still be there later. You don't get these years back.
If you feel like you're the only one
You probably aren't.
One of the hardest things about waiting is thinking that everyone else has one. That's exactly why families in Skerries are doing this together.
Ask your parents to have a look at the pledge. There may already be other people in your year who are waiting too, and that number is growing.
Because it's much easier to wait when you know you're not waiting alone.