You Can’t Reconnect with Family Through a Screen You Won’t Put Down

When families say, “We never really talk anymore,” the holidays are supposed to be the fix, the one time of year everyone gets under the same roof, sits around the same table, and finally catches up. But in 2025, most people arrive at those gatherings with a second guest in tow: their phone.

New behavioral data from Offline.now, a digital wellness platform founded by author and CEO Eli Singer, shows 8 in 10 people want a healthier relationship with technology, yet more than half feel too overwhelmed to know where to start. That makes the holidays a natural “reset” moment; if parents and other adults are willing to change their own habits first.

Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist Gaea Woods says phones have quietly become the “third party” in many households:

“Phones are killing interpersonal relationships - not because tech is evil, but because we use it unconsciously at the moments connection matters most. When you’re scrolling at dinner, you’re sending the message, ‘My phone is more interesting and important than you.’”

Research on “phubbing” aka phone snubbing backs this up, linking partner and family phone use during conversations with lower relationship satisfaction and more conflict. Offline.now’s experts see the same pattern: when screens show up at the table, intimacy and meaningful conversation drop.

Executive Function Coach Craig Selinger argues that the real leverage point isn’t screen-time rules for kids; it’s modelling by adults:

“If you want behavior change in kids, start with the parent model. A 12-year-old will not put their phone away at dinner if their parents won’t. Kids copy what you do, not what you say.”

When kids see parents physically turn phones face-down and set them aside, it creates permission, even relief. Over a few days of holiday visits, those small moments can add up to something families say they miss most: unhurried conversations, shared jokes, and the feeling that the people in front of you are more important than the feed on your screen.

For journalists covering holiday family dynamics, tech and relationships, or digital wellness, Offline.now can offer expert interviews on:

• How to design realistic, family-wide phone rules for gatherings
• Why parental modelling matters more than any app setting
• Simple scripts parents can use to set expectations without shaming kids

Featured Experts

• Gaea Woods, MA, LMFT – Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist specializing in digital dependency, intimacy, and communication in modern relationships.
• Craig Selinger, M.S., CCC-SLP – Executive Function Coach and child development specialist focused on how tech impacts learning, attention, and family systems.

Expert availability can be arranged through Offline.now’s media team.