Screen & Social Media Addiction Therapy · Online, in English

Your phone isn't just a habit — for a lot of us, it's the bridge home

Professional psychological support in English, from someone who thinks the way you do — for when you can't put the phone down, and it's not simply a lack of willpower. Social media and constant notifications are a real hijack of your reward system, and when that phone is also the only real-time thread to the people who stayed behind, cutting it off never works the way people expect it to.

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100% Online

Confidential

Systemic Approach

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First Assessment Session

A first session to understand what your phone is actually doing for you and shape a sustainable plan together. You decide with real information, not blindly.

US$25US$49.9950%

60 min · Video call

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When you can't just put it down

Screen addiction doesn't get fixed by deleting the app for a week. It takes understanding the reward system underneath it.

You've tried cutting back before — deleting an app, leaving the phone in another room — and a few days later you're back exactly where you started, maybe feeling worse for having "failed." That's not a character flaw. Social media and messaging apps are built to flood your reward system with small hits of dopamine, and when that supply gets cut abruptly, what shows up next — the restlessness, the irritability, the compulsive checking — is the expected response of a system that's been running on that supply for a long time. It's not a sign that something is wrong with you.

For a lot of people building a life away from where they're from, the phone carries extra weight: it's the group chat with family, the video call with the people you left behind, the one real-time thread to the ones who are counting on you from far away. That makes it harder — not weaker of you — to simply "put it down," because putting it down can feel like cutting the last line still connecting you home.

Ricardo De Castro King — Clinical Psychologist

Who's with you

I'm Ricardo, and you won't be alone in this

I'm a clinical psychologist with more than 15 years working with people carrying too much for too long, trained in systemic family therapy. I'm Colombian, based in Barranquilla, and I see clients online. But before any title, I'm someone who understands what it's like to hold two languages and two worlds at once. Many of the people I work with in English are staying connected to family back home through the very screen they're now trying to use less. You don't have to explain that part to me first.

Cutting back on something that also keeps you close to the people you love is easier to work through with someone next to you. If this feels like the moment, let's take the first step together — at your pace, no pressure.

Master's in Systemic Family Therapy

Universidad Simón Bolívar

Clinical Psychologist

15+ years of clinical experience

University Professor

16 years teaching and researching psychology

Systemic-Relational Approach

Evidence-based

Licensed Psychologist · Professional License 106127 (COLPSIC, Colombia)

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My approach

This is how I work with screen and social media use in therapy

I don't start from "just use it less." I start from what that phone is actually doing for your nervous system — and, often, for your connection to the people you love.

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Measuring the real dose, without judgment

Before changing anything, we look honestly at how many hours are really going into your phone and what's driving it — boredom, anxiety, loneliness, or the need to stay close to home.

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One sustainable cut, not total prohibition

Cutting it off completely almost always backfires, the same way it does for anyone whose dopamine source gets pulled overnight. We define one small, specific reduction you can actually sustain.

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Keeping the bridge, changing the habit

The goal isn't to disconnect you from the people back home. It's to separate that real connection from the scrolling that doesn't actually bring you closer to them.

How we start

A clear first step, no pressure

You book your assessment session

Message me on WhatsApp or leave your details in the form. We'll set up a first 60-minute video-call session, at a reduced rate (50% off).

We get to know your situation

In that first session I listen to how much of your day the phone is taking, what you've already tried, and what role it plays in staying connected to the people who matter to you. No rushed diagnoses — just understanding, together, what you need.

We shape the process together

You decide with real information, not blindly. If it feels right for you, we agree on a process built around you. If not, I'll still point you toward what you need.

Your first step

Start with an assessment session

A first session to meet each other and shape a sustainable plan. Reduced rate, so you decide with real information, not out of obligation.

US$25US$49.9950%

60 minutes · Video call · 100% confidential

Book My Assessment Session

Before you book

Frequently asked questions

How do I know if this is a habit or an addiction?

A habit still bends when you decide it should. An addiction fights back — restlessness, irritability, or a compulsive urge to check again when you try to cut down. If cutting back feels like withdrawal rather than a simple choice, that's worth looking at directly. In the assessment session we look together at what you're dealing with.

Isn't this just about willpower?

No. Notifications and social media are built to trigger a real dopamine response, and pulling that supply suddenly produces a real reaction, not a character failure. The fix isn't "try harder" — it's understanding the mechanism and building a plan you can actually sustain.

How long does this kind of therapy take?

There's no single formula: it depends on how long this pattern has been running and how much of your day it currently takes up. We define it together after the first session.

Does online therapy work as well as in-person for this?

Yes. The evidence supports teletherapy for this kind of work, and I use the same systemic-relational approach in both formats.

How much does the first session cost?

US$25 (50% off the regular price of US$49.99), 60 minutes by video call.

Prefer to talk first?

Message me and I'll answer personally

If you're not ready to book and would rather tell me a bit first, message me on WhatsApp or leave your details below. I answer personally within 24 hours, no obligation.

WhatsApp Directly

📍 Online · Barranquilla, Colombia

🕑 Mon-Fri 8am - 7pm · Sat 9am - 1pm (Colombia time)

If you're in emotional crisis or having thoughts of harming yourself, please seek help right away: in Colombia, call Line 106, or in the US call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline), or reach your local mental health line. You are not alone, and help is available right now.