'At 4.30pm today the unthinkable happened'

Karen is a mum of mixed sex, 15-year-old twins. And knows it. Each week she shares with us what her teenage two have been up to.

'At 4.30pm today the unthinkable happened...Teenie One lost her mobile phone. Quite how she managed it, given that it remains permanently grafted to her hand, is beyond me, but she did.

First panic set in, then panic turned to anger, then anger turned to blame and before I knew it, it was all my fault.

She had looked 'absolutely everywhere' which meant there was only one possible explanation - I must have scooped it up and put it in the washing machine. I explained as calmly as I could that this was highly implausible and suggested instead that she go and look in her pit of a bedroom as I was sure it had just got tangled up in her duvet or something. We had a hellish hour of near hysteria before the phone was finally discovered. It had dropped down behind her radiator.

What struck me afterwards is just how dependent she is on her phone and how stressed and anxious she was when she thought she'd lost it. And I'm sure she's not alone in this. There seems to be a real need in teenagers to be in contact with each other 24/7. If they're not messaging or tweeting they're on Facebook or the Xbox. Take away this ability to communicate and they feel vulnerable, exposed and unable to function. I can't help wondering what would have happened if the phone hadn't been found so quickly. I honestly think she would have self-combusted.

What on Earth do they find to talk about so much? Is it just my daughter, or do all teens feel the need to be in constant contact with their friends? All I know is, it's me that'll be picking up the bill...'

Are your kids constantly on their mobile phones? Tell us in our comments section below or on Facebook.

Karen's other blog posts...

• Karen's next blog - My terrible teenage two: 'It's not my fault'
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• Karen's previous blog - My terrible teenage two: 'Keeping them safe online'
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• All of Karen's blogs