Nobody on their deathbed ever wished they’d spent more time watching television. Life is short, and there are too many things that are more important and fulfilling than sitting in front of a television for hours on end. That’s not to suggest you should stop watching TV altogether, but I’ve come to see it as something best placed at the edge of life, rather than the center.
I didn’t always feel this way. In fact, there was a time in my life when I wasted nearly six hours of my day watching television. As evening rolled around, I’d plant myself on the couch, turn on the television, and vegetate till I fell asleep near midnight. Eight hours later, I’d wake up with the TV still on, feeling no more rested than when I went to sleep.
When you do the math, it’s rather shocking. Six hours per day adds up to 2190 hours over the course of a year, which equates to 91 days. THREE MONTHS! per year. Sitting in front of a television. Hypnotized. Tuned in, but zoned out. Living in a make-believe world while the real world passed me by.
“In its easy provision of relaxation and escape, television can be beneficial in limited doses. Yet when the habit interferes with the ability to grow, to learn new things, to lead an active life, then it does constitute a kind of dependence and should be taken seriously.”
From “Television Addiction Is No Mere Metaphor” — By Robert Kubey and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi —
Coming to Terms With My TV Addiction
Although I failed to recognize it at the time, it’s clear now that watching television had become a full-blown addiction for me. An escape mechanism that I used to distract myself from the problems, fears, and challenges I was refusing to deal with in my life.
I used television to distract myself from the shame, embarrassment, and stress I felt about some irresponsible financial decisions and the fallout they caused. I used it to avoid facing my fear of stepping out into the world more fully, connecting with others, and pursuing the higher purpose to which my soul was being called. I used it to cope with boredom and fill the void of an otherwise empty life.
In short, my life was a mess, my self-esteem was shot, and while TV may have provided a short-term escape from that reality, it ultimately kept me locked within it. Said another way, instead of using my time and energy to deal with my problems and improve my life, I was wasting it on television.
“Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon? Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”
— Mary Oliver —
First Steps on My Journey to Recovery
Fortunately, I met Ellen, my life partner for the last several years. When I met her, she didn’t even own a television. This puzzled me. What does she do for entertainment, I wondered. Doesn’t she get bored? How can she stand the silence? I didn’t ask her those questions directly, because I didn’t really care. In fact, on a deeper level, I respected and envied her for that choice.
In Ellen, I saw a person living a mindful, purposeful life that revolved around the things that matter most – her health and well-being; her family, friends, and community; and her life’s work as a Yoga Therapist. In her, I saw a potential life partner and an inspiring example of the kind of person I wanted to be and the life I wanted to live.
Hardly a day goes by that I don’t thank the Universe for bringing Ellen into my life. She provided the inspiration, encouragement and support to help me see beyond the challenging circumstances of my life at the time. Besides the inspiring example of how she was living her life, I remember an article she published for her Yoga students, in which she wrote:
“Where do you see yourself in five years, one year, one week, or one day? This can be a difficult question to answer, but it is imperative that you hold vision for your life. Without vision, your life shifts into idle.
“When you have an idea or vision for what you want to manifest in life, the wheels are set in motion. It is as if you’ve shifted out of ‘park’ and into fast forward. All your thinking, creativity, active and passive energy begins to consciously and unconsciously direct itself toward that which you want to create.
“It is really quite simple. Without a vision nothing happens. There is nowhere to direct your thoughts or energy. Without a vision, growth and movement comes to a halt. With vision, life becomes a course of ongoing expansion, opening doors to infinite possibility.”
I remember that article because it described my life so perfectly at the time. I had no vision for the future. I was locked in my misery, and my life had essentially come to a halt.
How I Conquered TV Addiction
Soon after I read Ellen’s article, I sat down and wrote out an inspiring vision for the life I wanted to live and the person I wanted to be. As you might imagine, my vision didn’t include watching six hours of television every day.
Still, my addiction was well-established. So, while my heartfelt vision statement was a great place to start, I knew it would take more than words on a page to begin turning that vision into reality. Here are several things that worked for me.
1. Monitor and Track How Much Time You Waste on TV
“You cannot manage or improve something until you measure it. Likewise, you can’t make the most of who you are – your talents and resources and capabilities – until you are aware of and accountable for your actions.”
When I first started on the road to recovery, I kept a daily written log to record the number of hours I spent watching television. This helped me see exactly how much of my life I was wasting. It also helped me see where I could cut back on TV time and replace it with more purposeful activities.
At the time, it was a revelation to realize I could turn off the TV at 9pm instead of midnight, get a good night’s sleep, and wake up at 4am. This freed up a good 3-4 hours in the morning that I could use however I wanted. I still live by this schedule, and my early-morning time is the most productive and creative part of my day.
2. Develop a Sense of Purpose and Mission for Your Life
“Human beings are teleological creatures. We are hard-wired to live purposively, to have direction. Without a target to shoot at, our lives are literally aimless. Without something productive to do, without positive goals and a purpose, a human being languishes. And then one of two things happens. Aimlessness begins to shut a person down in spiritual lethargy and emptiness, or the individual lashes out and turns to destructive goals just to make something happen.”
Besides my ever-deepening relationship with Ellen, the thing that’s been most critical to my recovery is the deep sense of purpose and mission I’ve developed about my life. When you feel this deep sense of purpose and that you have a mission in life, it’s much easier to let go of anything that distracts or takes time away from it.
For me, purpose is about working each day to become the best human being I can be. It’s about cultivating and strengthening the values that are most important to me – peace, love, creativity, excellence, perseverance, and service. Life purpose, for me, is more about being and becoming, rather than doing.
Mission, on the other hand, is about doing; it’s about using my time, energy, skills and other resources to serve the world. Specifically, my mission is to help you – and others like to you – create a happier, healthier, more prosperous life through my writing, teaching and coaching.
This deserves repeating – when you feel a profound sense of purpose and mission in your life, you don’t want to waste your time and energy on television. Instead, you’re driven to use your resources wisely, and in service to that purpose and mission.
3. Realize That Television is Stealing Your Life
“Every single hour of television watched after the age of 25 reduces the viewer’s life expectancy by 21.8 minutes.”
As I said at the beginning, I believe there’s a small place for television in life. Very small though, because when you really think about it, aside from some short-term relaxation and entertainment value, what do you get out of it?
If you watch 3 hours of TV tonight, will you be any happier tomorrow? Will you have more friends or more love in your life? Will you be any smarter? Will you be any healthier or wealthier? If you watch 3 hours of TV tonight, will it improve your life in any way tomorrow?
To paraphrase author Annie Dillard, how you spend your days is how you spend your life. I don’t know about you, but I’d hate to wake up many years down the road and realize I’d wasted much of my life watching TV.
4. Find Alternatives to Watching Television
“Too many vacations that last too long, too many movies, too much TV, too much video game playing – too much undisciplined leisure time in which a person continually takes the course of least resistance gradually wastes a life. It ensures that a person’s capacities stay dormant, that talents remain undeveloped, that the mind and spirit become lethargic and that the heart is unfulfilled.”
Idle hands are the devil’s workshop. With nothing else to do with my time, it was far too easy to get pulled toward watching television. Certainly, there’s something to be said for cultivating the ability to simply sit in silence with only your thoughts, but that only goes so far. I had to find other ways to use my time.
When I’m not working or spending time with Ellen, I read a good book or write in my journal. In fact, that’s how I spend my early-morning hours. Back when I started on my recovery, I created a morning writing ritual known as Morning Pages. This is the writing practice popularized by Julia Cameron in her book The Artist’s Way. I pour myself a hot cup of coffee, sit down at my desk, and write in the early-morning silence.
You don’t have to spend your free time reading or writing, although a daily journaling practice might do wonders for you. You can use your free time however you like.
Watch some excellent personal development classes online.
Get outdoors and go for a hike.
Take up drawing, painting, dancing or some other creative activity.
Start an online business or launch a new blog.
Find some Meetup groups to join or start one of your own.
Clean out those closets or the basement, and sell or donate everything you no longer need.
Go to bed earlier. This probably isn’t a valid alternative if it’s the middle of the day. But if it’s 8:00 in the evening, and you have nothing else to do, instead of watching TV, why not just go to bed. Throw on the jammies, brush your teeth, grab a good book and head for the bedroom. You can make it a nice little pre-slumber ritual that, in time, you’ll come to love and look forward to. You’ll sleep better and wake up earlier, feeling fresh and ready for the day ahead.
The alternatives to watching television are limited only by your imagination and willingness to move out of your comfort zone.
5. Exercise Consistently
In her book, The Willpower Instinct, Dr. Kelly McGonigal calls physical exercise “the closest thing to a wonder drug that self-control scientists have discovered.” Why, because multiple research studies have shown that when people begin exercising more consistently, other areas of their life improve as well. Exercisers tend to reduce their smoking, drinking and caffeine intake. They eat less junk food and more healthy food. They spend less time watching television and more time on productive activities. They save more money, feel more in control of their emotions and procrastinate less.
In his book, The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg calls exercise a “keystone habit” that triggers widespread change in our lives. I can attest to this. One of the first steps I took on my road to recovery was to resume my exercise routine, and I’ve stayed consistent with it for the past several years. I don’t do it every day, but often enough that it’s an integral part of living a healthier, happier, more productive life.
The Journey Continues
I still watch television, but I’ve created a healthy relationship with it. Instead of wasting six hours per day, as I did at the height of my addiction, Ellen and I now watch less than 10 hours per week. And since we don’t own a television, we only watch movies on DVD or from an online service, such as Netflix or Amazon Prime Video.
Effectively, that means I’ve gained 32 hours per week, which works out to roughly two months per year. Think of what you could do with an extra two months per year.
Of course, life still has its problems and challenges. Its ups and downs. That’s just how life is. The difference now is that, rather than medicate myself with television, I find healthier, more purposeful ways to invest my time and energy.
Ready to Break Free and Reclaim Your Life?
If this article hit close to home, that may be your signal. You don’t need to keep losing hours of your life to shows you barely care about, scrolling you don’t even enjoy, or another night that disappears before you know it.
TV addiction isn’t really about television. It’s about the habit loop that keeps you stuck in a behavior pattern that no longer serves you. Fortunately, we can fix that.
If you’re ready to stop relying on willpower and start building a real strategy, I can help. I offer private one-on-one coaching for people who want to break the pattern, and begin using their time in ways that actually matter.
If you enjoyed this article, and would like to read more from me, hop on my email list, and I’ll be in touch when I have something I think will be helpful to you.
By Michael D. Pollock
Michael D. Pollock is a behavior change coach and writer who helps people break stubborn patterns, rebuild self-trust, and create lives that reflect who they truly are. His work explores the intersection of habits, identity, psychology, neuroscience and deep personal change.
Wikipedia: Television addiction is a proposed addiction model associated with maladaptive or compulsive behavior associated with watching television programming.
Research Paper Published in Journal of Economic Psychology: "We find that heavy TV viewers … report lower life satisfaction. Long TV hours are also linked to higher material aspirations and anxiety."
Recent long-term study showing that high television viewing and low physical activity in early adulthood contributes to decreased mental function later in life.
Even though some people argue that binge-watching is a harmless addiction, findings from this study suggest that binge-watching should no longer be viewed this way.
Sobering NY Times article on TV usage. " Every single hour of television watched after the age of 25 reduces the viewer’s life expectancy by 21.8 minutes."
2013 article published in Journal of Behavioral Addictions. Provides description of TV addiction, negative consequences, assessment, etiology, prevention and treatment.
Daniel Goleman: The proposition that television can be addictive is proving to be more than a glib metaphor. The most intensive scientific studies … are finding that … watching television has many of the marks of a dependency like alcoholism …
American Heart Association – A study found that every hour spent in front of the television per day brings with it an 11 percent greater risk of premature death from all causes, and an 18 percent greater risk of dying from cardiovascular disease.
257 thoughts on “How I Overcame TV Addiction, Reclaimed My Life, and Gained Two Months Per Year”
Matilda Garcia
Wow, I tried thinking about all the things I could do. But somehow I never get on with it. I must have some kind of extreme social anxiety. Is easier to turn the tv on. I always find something more interesting. I know my life is empty and has no meaning. It’s too late to change.
I am a doctor. I am 60 yrs old. Working full time listening to people whole day, I don’t want to talk to anyone once I come home. This started when my kids were young and my husband lived in a different State and traveling for a job as first generation immigrants trying to get a green card. Now that is not a problem, I don’t know how to communicate with my family. I am a very compassionate physician and I have fun at my job with my patients and staff. My husband tried his best with me and gave up. He is on phone for hours with his sisters and brothers as I am addicted to TV. My 22 year old daughter is leaving for her first job was talking to me, I wanted to watch my show. Then yesterday she said mom get married to your TV. That’s when I felt it. I also sit on the couch till I sleep every day after work and all weekend. I have visceral fat doubled. I have pain in my butt but scared to leave the TV. I feel that I have wasted my Life. I am so happy that I saw your article when I looked into TV addiction. I have achieved the impossible things I can do this. I am going to remove my TV in living room. The only other TV is in my basement where I never go. Thank you and God bless you.
Thank you for writing this article. I had to come to grips with my television addiction by telling my adult daughter that I have this problem. To say it out loud to someone did make me feel a little better, but the shame is there. Constantly watching reruns of shows that I already seen, especially old shows from my childhood, was becoming too much. Too much time wasted, not getting things done at home, not doing my self-paced computer course, and just having the television on as background noise while reading or studying was getting ridiculous.
I decided to watch one television show ( The Young & The Restless) and do more goal-setting projects like finish my computer course, read without background noise, and do all my housework instead of leaving it for the weekend. I am still working on cutting down my television time, but sometimes it’s hard. Writing in a journal about how I will deal with my addiction will help, and I can record any positive changes.
Thanks, again, for this inspirational article.
It’s great to hear that I’m not alone. I’ve been addicted for a long time, and I’m having a lot of trouble.
For me it’s Netflix, and it started when my mom would come home from work late, really tired, and she’d put on an episode or two of Friends to unwind and I would join her (I was about 12). She’d fall asleep and I’d continue watching. I remember pulling an all-nighter watching Friends on a weeknight one night thinking “wait this is so cool, I can do this??” Since then, whenever I came home from school I’d just watch episode after episode, university included. I’d rewatch the same show for the 17th time, just for something to do. Tiktok and Instagram were also to blame, of course, they were just a different version of the same thing. I was always smart enough to get by, so my parents never realized. I still had friends and a social life, but anytime I was alone, I was watching something. I still can’t sleep without watching something.
Now I’ve graduated, I’m in my first post-grad job, turning 25 next week. It’s incomprehensible to me that I lived like this for so long, and yet it feels so ingrained into who I am. I also feel like I have basically zero self-discipline to turn them off and go to the gym or something.
Am I hopeless? Where would I even start? Any tips would be greatly appreciated. I should probably go to therapy.
I would really like to stop watching television like forever, for multiple reasons. My biggest problem is I live with 2 people who I am sure are addicted to tv, problem is because of the digital cable plan, I am part of their “ network “ and if anything goes wrong with their cable boxes or the pvr they need my tv and box to reboot the system. If it was me living alone. I would smash my tv to bits and have no cable service.
I am 39 and I watch very little tv these days. Pretty much mostly a show called the Repair shop once a week but mostly when they have a sewing project because I am into sewing now. And I can learn a new thing. But I have so many interests now. I also quit playing video games recently I have so many things I want to do, I would rather live life than what it all the time my grandpa is a total couch spud. But that’s him. But this is my life and how I want to live it.
Thank you so much, it points a finger at area where I can let go. I have so much I want to do, yet don’t have time. I would if I stopped watching a 3 hour football game for example
I’m addicted to TV. I’ve ovcome past addictions. I know that getting rid of TV is for the best, I was without TV for 5+ years, but now I’m in a quagmire. You see, my love-in partner bought a huge TV a few years ago. He plays video games, but not for hours on end. It brings him joy and laughter, he connects with people via gaming(we do not go out), and it’s also allows him to wind down from the stress of work at end of night.
How do I ask this of him? He says he’s willing to get ride of it(b/c I told him that unplugging it will not solve the problem, I will just plug it back in), but I hate to take that away from him, plus he spend big $ on it.
He says he is willing to get rid of it. What an awesome, supportive partner! Receive his gift of love and support, and know that you are worth the sacrifice😊!
Neilsen family
a beautiful prison is still a prison, that is what electronic media that involves moving images and sound are. Whether it be television or video games or streaming videos, by stimulating your visual cortex, it stops your perception from functioning normally.
it puts you in a dream like state, you can sit and eat a bag of chips without realizing it or even “enjoying it” while in this induced state.
Leaving this world where we control virtually nothing into a fantasy where we mere mortals battle armies or command impossible machines, is meant to be pleasurable, it is in fact part of the inducement to get the watcher to continue, to stay within the prison, to self justify the wasted time and wasted life.
Not matter how beautiful or expensive a TV is, it is still a trap that drains your pysche, your life, your relationships with reality and other people in reality.
Unplug it, wrap it in bubble pack, turn it towards the wall, all to make it less tempting to turn it on. after a month of not watching it, put it for sale or in storage, or donate it. Its like having a pound of heroin in your house and pretending you’ll never be tempted. We are not built like that. We are all prisoners of desire. We can only attempt to channel our desires in new directions, we can never stop them for they are us.
RM
Dear Michael, thank you so much for this superb article. It hit the nail on the head with how I’ve been feeling and thinking of late. I notice that on average I watch 2 hrs of TV almost every night. With so many quality shows being released, TV has become the easy and lazy choice for the way I spend my evenings. For me, it’s a form of escape from all the things I know I could be doing that would significantly improve my life and take it in a whole other positive direction. All the quotes resonated with me and I’m going to start this weekend by carving out my vision. Next, for the entire month of May, I will keep my TV switched off. It’s good to get uncomfortable… that’s where the magic lies I’m told 🙂 Thank you again and all the best!
literally, it was a life-saving article for me. I have been a TV- addict from my childhood and I never thought about its bad effects on life, but somehow when I came to your blog( one of my friends recommended your post), I realize I have wasted a big part of my life and it’s time to stop this. I followed your tips and they were really helpful for getting out form this addiction. Thank you so much.
I’d try to go out or do activities I enjoy in group! Meet new people with the hope of slowly building this safety network myself
Michael W
Go out for a walk. A walk makes me feels “awake” because I feel like I am actually sleeping/ a living corpse/ soulless meatball when I am watching TV or Youtube. I think a lot during the walk: I waste too much time on Youtube, I should start learn programing, I should keep praticing piano……since there is no TV around you and there is nothing you can do except thinking. I always find myself a lot of goals and plans even in a short one-hour walk, and desire of watching Youtube become lower after walk. I am not get rid of my addiction yet, but at least this is one way to deal with it.
Nancy
You don’t have to go out. My most vivid memories are of the years when I had no TV before Youtube existed. I remember the songs of birds I had never notjced, the creative ideas I had, the curiosity to learn new things. Then along came Youtube, and this is more invasive because it’s readily available for free on any web browser. So I’m doing the opposite of all advice here, I’m spending less time with others and going into solitude with music and knitting and talking with God about my favorite subject, me. I look at it as a transformative journey, and I have to go it alone.
Mark
I’m not sure how I came about your article, but I’m very glad I did. I’m not addicted to TV, but I waste time in an evening just looking at crap on my phone, or the iPad and sometimes TV/YouTube.
Your article is a reminder to switch it off more often, and it’s so true about exercise. I used to do intense Bootcamp style training a few years ago for 3 times each week, and managed to land a great job, that I still have because I was more focused and alert than I am now.
My career has slowed down because I’ve been so less active and I’ve taken my foot off of the accelerator, and started wasting time.
Thank you for this post. It was much needed, I’m booking myself back into the Bootcamp I enjoyed so much.
Television is merely a handy name, it was the first “container” that home based mixed media of sound and image became widely available. It is this component of the 2 that is sufficiently powerful to disengage your neural network from reality and reprogram it. Try watching tv without sound, and see it loses its “magic” rather quickly. It must contain the 2 components together. Radio is not nearly the problem that “TV” is, in fact it is the opposite, it actually activates your imagination if you listen to a radio play or sports program you build the images in your mind to go with the audio.
Youtube, or other streaming media like Amazon Prime etc, is just “TV” by another name and with another delivery method and payment system. There is no need to think of them as separate things, they are TV by another name and have all the neurological problems of the original. They are built to program you. Their unit of engagement are called appropriately “programs”, because they program you bit by bit, hour by hour, day by day, etc. till years have passed and you have gained nothing but they have gained everything.
Only by disengaging do your receive back your own life, your own interests and your own beliefs, instead of those programs that have been inserted in your mind while you shut off all resistance sat there wide eyed, scrolling endlessly.
Those who own this world, want you to watch television, they rarely have your best interest in mind, which you would notice if you shut off your “TV”. Perhaps its time to do something that is in your own best interest, perhaps its time to say goodbye to the constant audiovisual stimulation??
There is hope if you are struggling with this addiction!
I recently joined a 12 step fellowship (like Alcoholics Anonymous) for internet addiction, it’s a broader fellowship for people who struggle with compulsive internet and technology use, including binge watching. Many members are TV addicts like me and you. I joined three months ago and I have been completely and utterly blown away with the positive results I am seeing in my life every day. TV, movies and streaming ruled my life for years and years. I couldn’t imagine giving it up for even one evening – my body went into panic mode just thinking of it. I really tried absolutely every method of self-control to use TV in moderation. It simply wasn’t possible for me to stop once a started and once I did stop, I couldn’t *stay* stopped. Finding this fellowship is the *only* thing that has been able to drag me up from the depths. Today I’m so grateful to say I have only had one binge in three months. I’m learning how to become the person I always wanted to be and to do all the things I always wanted to do. I’m not religious and I feel really cheesy writing this but now I’m starting to understand why people use the word ‘miracle’ – so many things I thought would never be possible for me are now within my reach.
We have online meetings every day (at the time I’m writing), why not check out one meeting just to see what it’s all about? It’s totally free and nobody will force you to do anything at all – you can even just sit and listen if you want. https://internetaddictsanonymous.org/
If you take one thing away from this message please hear this: you are not alone. There is hope!
Thank you for this article, Michael, and thank you every one else who has shared their experiences here in the comments. I have seen many stories like my own here, and it has inspired me to share my thoughts as well.
I am turning 30 tomorrow. I have spent most of my 20s alone, and am still waiting for right person to spend my life with. I cannot say that my adult life has been without achievement; I am about to receive my Masters in Education and I have many dear friends in my life.
The problems come when I have to stand still. I have ADHD, and my thoughts spiral and shift unendingly. Simply being at rest is stressful to me. TV is how I turn my brain off. The last 5 years, you were as likely to find me alone staring at the screen on a Friday or Saturday night as anywhere else. When the rest of my life- job, school, music performances- keeps me running all day, this time is a refuge. I’m pretty introverted, and enjoy this recharge time in the evenings. But it eats whole weekends, most days off, all the time that I don’t absolutely have to be somewhere.
I was laid off in April as part of the COVID-19 lockdown, and ever since I’ve been watching more and more. I should wake up and work on my classes or my thesis, but instead I open up Hulu or Netflix- just for one show as I get going. Just one, or maybe two. Soon the day is gone, and I’ve done nothing.
On the days when I can resist, I feel amazing- productive, energetic, coordinated and on top of things. There are some days when I can even manage some TV and still get things done, but I’ve lost weeks to the tube.
After reading this article, I sat down and built a method for checking myself and stopping my spiral of sloth. Whenever I look at the time, I ask myself 4 questions:
Are you Creating?
Are you Sharing?
Are you Learning?
Are you Managing?
If I can’t answer yes to any of these, then I need to do something else. Right now, I’m creating this post, and sharing it with anyone who might read it. After this, I will manage my health by brushing my teeth. I’ll probably share some time with a friend on the phone before I go to bed. I’ll read a book, and create a whole world from the words on the page.
If I find myself watching TV, I am not creating. I’m not sharing. I’m not managing my life. I might be learning- documentaries or how-tos . If I want to watch something purely entertaining, I’ll have to find someone to share it with. Otherwise, I’d better find something else to do.
I hope this is something I can stick to. I don’t want to waste the next 10 years like I did the last 10.
I watch movies on my laptop for hours on end. Am in campus now and have felt that it’s interfering with my studies. It takes up all my study time and before I know it the semester is over and another begins almost failing all units. I just feel like time is rushing and nothing is happening in my life except fantasizing what I see in movies(healthy relationships, vacations, a lot of friends, creativity, making an impact in the world…).
I currently feel so empty and have none of those. It has become my hideout from life. I feel alone, i don’t interact with people a lot and this has took away almost all my self esteem, ability to communicate with people and all of my social life. I have these big plans and ideas in my mind but always gets carried away by movies looking for a “high point” and filling a void which never gets filled.
Under the current coronavirus crisis schools have been closed and find myself watching up to 20 hours a day even struggling to get time to sleep or cook for myself. I feel that I finally need to have a control of my life again and become a better person and this article has just given me a starting point. I am so grateful for this article.
Lev, i dont want give some catchy quote that makes sense. Rather I would say just try harder every day and know that you are not alone
lisa
Hi Lev, I really feel like I get what you are going though. I’ve always been addicted to tv/ netflix series. Unlike other people who watch cartoons and science fiction to relax, I watch ‘realistic’ movies and series to escape into a different reality. The confronting thing is that my younger sister is living the kind of life I see in those movies. This makes it so painful knowing that I could’ve had that if I hadn’t chosen to take the easy way, but instead living life to the fullest like her. My entire family and a lot of my friends I feel are like this, very succesfull and living a truthfull life. I don’t get why I am how I am. I feel so messed up and fake.
Thank the universe that you met Ellen, and that you were so inspired that you made a commitment to overcome your TV addiction. Thank you for stepping away from TV and moving into your purpose and mission. I appreciate you honesty and your skill as a writer to break down the process in a way that is clear and concise and easy to understand.
I was sitting here watching yet another TV show that I had little interest in, and this was after mindlessly watching TV all day, frustrated, I did a google search for overcoming TV addiction and your blog popped up. I was reading y our blog while the show was still running. Midway through reading your post, I turned off the TV and felt a sense of peace immediately and finished reading.
For many years I had no TV and loved it. I was a holistic healer, painter, sculptor, and writer and then I began losing my vision. I returned to school to get my MS in counseling to blend with my holistic healing work. Which is what I currently do. However, when I am not working, I use, no, I have used my loss of vision and a stroke that I had 7 months ago as an excuse to be passively engaged with life my purpose and my mission. Can you tell how inspired I am? You have given me what I give to my clients every day ~ hope and a plan of action!
Thank you Michael and Ellen. I have subscribed to your blog and look forward to reading more. I also look forward to going to bed and getting up early and tomorrow, beginning a new chapter in my life; actually it begins right now!
Wow, I tried thinking about all the things I could do. But somehow I never get on with it. I must have some kind of extreme social anxiety. Is easier to turn the tv on. I always find something more interesting. I know my life is empty and has no meaning. It’s too late to change.
Thanks! Now my screen time reduced to 1 and a half hour and sometimes 30 minutes. It used to be 7 hours.
I am a doctor. I am 60 yrs old. Working full time listening to people whole day, I don’t want to talk to anyone once I come home. This started when my kids were young and my husband lived in a different State and traveling for a job as first generation immigrants trying to get a green card. Now that is not a problem, I don’t know how to communicate with my family. I am a very compassionate physician and I have fun at my job with my patients and staff. My husband tried his best with me and gave up. He is on phone for hours with his sisters and brothers as I am addicted to TV. My 22 year old daughter is leaving for her first job was talking to me, I wanted to watch my show. Then yesterday she said mom get married to your TV. That’s when I felt it. I also sit on the couch till I sleep every day after work and all weekend. I have visceral fat doubled. I have pain in my butt but scared to leave the TV. I feel that I have wasted my Life. I am so happy that I saw your article when I looked into TV addiction. I have achieved the impossible things I can do this. I am going to remove my TV in living room. The only other TV is in my basement where I never go. Thank you and God bless you.
Thank you for writing this article. I had to come to grips with my television addiction by telling my adult daughter that I have this problem. To say it out loud to someone did make me feel a little better, but the shame is there. Constantly watching reruns of shows that I already seen, especially old shows from my childhood, was becoming too much. Too much time wasted, not getting things done at home, not doing my self-paced computer course, and just having the television on as background noise while reading or studying was getting ridiculous.
I decided to watch one television show ( The Young & The Restless) and do more goal-setting projects like finish my computer course, read without background noise, and do all my housework instead of leaving it for the weekend. I am still working on cutting down my television time, but sometimes it’s hard. Writing in a journal about how I will deal with my addiction will help, and I can record any positive changes.
Thanks, again, for this inspirational article.
It’s great to hear that I’m not alone. I’ve been addicted for a long time, and I’m having a lot of trouble.
For me it’s Netflix, and it started when my mom would come home from work late, really tired, and she’d put on an episode or two of Friends to unwind and I would join her (I was about 12). She’d fall asleep and I’d continue watching. I remember pulling an all-nighter watching Friends on a weeknight one night thinking “wait this is so cool, I can do this??” Since then, whenever I came home from school I’d just watch episode after episode, university included. I’d rewatch the same show for the 17th time, just for something to do. Tiktok and Instagram were also to blame, of course, they were just a different version of the same thing. I was always smart enough to get by, so my parents never realized. I still had friends and a social life, but anytime I was alone, I was watching something. I still can’t sleep without watching something.
Now I’ve graduated, I’m in my first post-grad job, turning 25 next week. It’s incomprehensible to me that I lived like this for so long, and yet it feels so ingrained into who I am. I also feel like I have basically zero self-discipline to turn them off and go to the gym or something.
Am I hopeless? Where would I even start? Any tips would be greatly appreciated. I should probably go to therapy.
I would really like to stop watching television like forever, for multiple reasons. My biggest problem is I live with 2 people who I am sure are addicted to tv, problem is because of the digital cable plan, I am part of their “ network “ and if anything goes wrong with their cable boxes or the pvr they need my tv and box to reboot the system. If it was me living alone. I would smash my tv to bits and have no cable service.
I am 39 and I watch very little tv these days. Pretty much mostly a show called the Repair shop once a week but mostly when they have a sewing project because I am into sewing now. And I can learn a new thing. But I have so many interests now. I also quit playing video games recently I have so many things I want to do, I would rather live life than what it all the time my grandpa is a total couch spud. But that’s him. But this is my life and how I want to live it.
Thanks for this article! It is insightful, forward, honest, and convincing.
Thank you so much, it points a finger at area where I can let go. I have so much I want to do, yet don’t have time. I would if I stopped watching a 3 hour football game for example
I’m addicted to TV. I’ve ovcome past addictions. I know that getting rid of TV is for the best, I was without TV for 5+ years, but now I’m in a quagmire. You see, my love-in partner bought a huge TV a few years ago. He plays video games, but not for hours on end. It brings him joy and laughter, he connects with people via gaming(we do not go out), and it’s also allows him to wind down from the stress of work at end of night.
How do I ask this of him? He says he’s willing to get ride of it(b/c I told him that unplugging it will not solve the problem, I will just plug it back in), but I hate to take that away from him, plus he spend big $ on it.
He says he is willing to get rid of it. What an awesome, supportive partner! Receive his gift of love and support, and know that you are worth the sacrifice😊!
a beautiful prison is still a prison, that is what electronic media that involves moving images and sound are. Whether it be television or video games or streaming videos, by stimulating your visual cortex, it stops your perception from functioning normally.
it puts you in a dream like state, you can sit and eat a bag of chips without realizing it or even “enjoying it” while in this induced state.
Leaving this world where we control virtually nothing into a fantasy where we mere mortals battle armies or command impossible machines, is meant to be pleasurable, it is in fact part of the inducement to get the watcher to continue, to stay within the prison, to self justify the wasted time and wasted life.
Not matter how beautiful or expensive a TV is, it is still a trap that drains your pysche, your life, your relationships with reality and other people in reality.
Unplug it, wrap it in bubble pack, turn it towards the wall, all to make it less tempting to turn it on. after a month of not watching it, put it for sale or in storage, or donate it. Its like having a pound of heroin in your house and pretending you’ll never be tempted. We are not built like that. We are all prisoners of desire. We can only attempt to channel our desires in new directions, we can never stop them for they are us.
Dear Michael, thank you so much for this superb article. It hit the nail on the head with how I’ve been feeling and thinking of late. I notice that on average I watch 2 hrs of TV almost every night. With so many quality shows being released, TV has become the easy and lazy choice for the way I spend my evenings. For me, it’s a form of escape from all the things I know I could be doing that would significantly improve my life and take it in a whole other positive direction. All the quotes resonated with me and I’m going to start this weekend by carving out my vision. Next, for the entire month of May, I will keep my TV switched off. It’s good to get uncomfortable… that’s where the magic lies I’m told 🙂 Thank you again and all the best!
literally, it was a life-saving article for me. I have been a TV- addict from my childhood and I never thought about its bad effects on life, but somehow when I came to your blog( one of my friends recommended your post), I realize I have wasted a big part of my life and it’s time to stop this. I followed your tips and they were really helpful for getting out form this addiction. Thank you so much.
Michaels recovery stemmed from meeting Ellen. He had a safety network with her giving him the motivation to get over his addiction.
What does the person with no emotional support nor to do things other but don’t have the motivation to do nothing but because watch TV ?
I’d try to go out or do activities I enjoy in group! Meet new people with the hope of slowly building this safety network myself
Go out for a walk. A walk makes me feels “awake” because I feel like I am actually sleeping/ a living corpse/ soulless meatball when I am watching TV or Youtube. I think a lot during the walk: I waste too much time on Youtube, I should start learn programing, I should keep praticing piano……since there is no TV around you and there is nothing you can do except thinking. I always find myself a lot of goals and plans even in a short one-hour walk, and desire of watching Youtube become lower after walk. I am not get rid of my addiction yet, but at least this is one way to deal with it.
You don’t have to go out. My most vivid memories are of the years when I had no TV before Youtube existed. I remember the songs of birds I had never notjced, the creative ideas I had, the curiosity to learn new things. Then along came Youtube, and this is more invasive because it’s readily available for free on any web browser. So I’m doing the opposite of all advice here, I’m spending less time with others and going into solitude with music and knitting and talking with God about my favorite subject, me. I look at it as a transformative journey, and I have to go it alone.
I’m not sure how I came about your article, but I’m very glad I did. I’m not addicted to TV, but I waste time in an evening just looking at crap on my phone, or the iPad and sometimes TV/YouTube.
Your article is a reminder to switch it off more often, and it’s so true about exercise. I used to do intense Bootcamp style training a few years ago for 3 times each week, and managed to land a great job, that I still have because I was more focused and alert than I am now.
My career has slowed down because I’ve been so less active and I’ve taken my foot off of the accelerator, and started wasting time.
Thank you for this post. It was much needed, I’m booking myself back into the Bootcamp I enjoyed so much.
Television is merely a handy name, it was the first “container” that home based mixed media of sound and image became widely available. It is this component of the 2 that is sufficiently powerful to disengage your neural network from reality and reprogram it. Try watching tv without sound, and see it loses its “magic” rather quickly. It must contain the 2 components together. Radio is not nearly the problem that “TV” is, in fact it is the opposite, it actually activates your imagination if you listen to a radio play or sports program you build the images in your mind to go with the audio.
Youtube, or other streaming media like Amazon Prime etc, is just “TV” by another name and with another delivery method and payment system. There is no need to think of them as separate things, they are TV by another name and have all the neurological problems of the original. They are built to program you. Their unit of engagement are called appropriately “programs”, because they program you bit by bit, hour by hour, day by day, etc. till years have passed and you have gained nothing but they have gained everything.
Only by disengaging do your receive back your own life, your own interests and your own beliefs, instead of those programs that have been inserted in your mind while you shut off all resistance sat there wide eyed, scrolling endlessly.
Those who own this world, want you to watch television, they rarely have your best interest in mind, which you would notice if you shut off your “TV”. Perhaps its time to do something that is in your own best interest, perhaps its time to say goodbye to the constant audiovisual stimulation??
There is hope if you are struggling with this addiction!
I recently joined a 12 step fellowship (like Alcoholics Anonymous) for internet addiction, it’s a broader fellowship for people who struggle with compulsive internet and technology use, including binge watching. Many members are TV addicts like me and you. I joined three months ago and I have been completely and utterly blown away with the positive results I am seeing in my life every day. TV, movies and streaming ruled my life for years and years. I couldn’t imagine giving it up for even one evening – my body went into panic mode just thinking of it. I really tried absolutely every method of self-control to use TV in moderation. It simply wasn’t possible for me to stop once a started and once I did stop, I couldn’t *stay* stopped. Finding this fellowship is the *only* thing that has been able to drag me up from the depths. Today I’m so grateful to say I have only had one binge in three months. I’m learning how to become the person I always wanted to be and to do all the things I always wanted to do. I’m not religious and I feel really cheesy writing this but now I’m starting to understand why people use the word ‘miracle’ – so many things I thought would never be possible for me are now within my reach.
We have online meetings every day (at the time I’m writing), why not check out one meeting just to see what it’s all about? It’s totally free and nobody will force you to do anything at all – you can even just sit and listen if you want. https://internetaddictsanonymous.org/
If you take one thing away from this message please hear this: you are not alone. There is hope!
Thank you for the group link. I am joining a meeting today because of you.
This is a great general advice for all kinds of addiction, TV/Internet/Social media addictions included.
Thank you for this article, Michael, and thank you every one else who has shared their experiences here in the comments. I have seen many stories like my own here, and it has inspired me to share my thoughts as well.
I am turning 30 tomorrow. I have spent most of my 20s alone, and am still waiting for right person to spend my life with. I cannot say that my adult life has been without achievement; I am about to receive my Masters in Education and I have many dear friends in my life.
The problems come when I have to stand still. I have ADHD, and my thoughts spiral and shift unendingly. Simply being at rest is stressful to me. TV is how I turn my brain off. The last 5 years, you were as likely to find me alone staring at the screen on a Friday or Saturday night as anywhere else. When the rest of my life- job, school, music performances- keeps me running all day, this time is a refuge. I’m pretty introverted, and enjoy this recharge time in the evenings. But it eats whole weekends, most days off, all the time that I don’t absolutely have to be somewhere.
I was laid off in April as part of the COVID-19 lockdown, and ever since I’ve been watching more and more. I should wake up and work on my classes or my thesis, but instead I open up Hulu or Netflix- just for one show as I get going. Just one, or maybe two. Soon the day is gone, and I’ve done nothing.
On the days when I can resist, I feel amazing- productive, energetic, coordinated and on top of things. There are some days when I can even manage some TV and still get things done, but I’ve lost weeks to the tube.
After reading this article, I sat down and built a method for checking myself and stopping my spiral of sloth. Whenever I look at the time, I ask myself 4 questions:
Are you Creating?
Are you Sharing?
Are you Learning?
Are you Managing?
If I can’t answer yes to any of these, then I need to do something else. Right now, I’m creating this post, and sharing it with anyone who might read it. After this, I will manage my health by brushing my teeth. I’ll probably share some time with a friend on the phone before I go to bed. I’ll read a book, and create a whole world from the words on the page.
If I find myself watching TV, I am not creating. I’m not sharing. I’m not managing my life. I might be learning- documentaries or how-tos . If I want to watch something purely entertaining, I’ll have to find someone to share it with. Otherwise, I’d better find something else to do.
I hope this is something I can stick to. I don’t want to waste the next 10 years like I did the last 10.
Spencer I love this – thank you
I watch movies on my laptop for hours on end. Am in campus now and have felt that it’s interfering with my studies. It takes up all my study time and before I know it the semester is over and another begins almost failing all units. I just feel like time is rushing and nothing is happening in my life except fantasizing what I see in movies(healthy relationships, vacations, a lot of friends, creativity, making an impact in the world…).
I currently feel so empty and have none of those. It has become my hideout from life. I feel alone, i don’t interact with people a lot and this has took away almost all my self esteem, ability to communicate with people and all of my social life. I have these big plans and ideas in my mind but always gets carried away by movies looking for a “high point” and filling a void which never gets filled.
Under the current coronavirus crisis schools have been closed and find myself watching up to 20 hours a day even struggling to get time to sleep or cook for myself. I feel that I finally need to have a control of my life again and become a better person and this article has just given me a starting point. I am so grateful for this article.
Lev, i dont want give some catchy quote that makes sense. Rather I would say just try harder every day and know that you are not alone
Hi Lev, I really feel like I get what you are going though. I’ve always been addicted to tv/ netflix series. Unlike other people who watch cartoons and science fiction to relax, I watch ‘realistic’ movies and series to escape into a different reality. The confronting thing is that my younger sister is living the kind of life I see in those movies. This makes it so painful knowing that I could’ve had that if I hadn’t chosen to take the easy way, but instead living life to the fullest like her. My entire family and a lot of my friends I feel are like this, very succesfull and living a truthfull life. I don’t get why I am how I am. I feel so messed up and fake.
Thank the universe that you met Ellen, and that you were so inspired that you made a commitment to overcome your TV addiction. Thank you for stepping away from TV and moving into your purpose and mission. I appreciate you honesty and your skill as a writer to break down the process in a way that is clear and concise and easy to understand.
I was sitting here watching yet another TV show that I had little interest in, and this was after mindlessly watching TV all day, frustrated, I did a google search for overcoming TV addiction and your blog popped up. I was reading y our blog while the show was still running. Midway through reading your post, I turned off the TV and felt a sense of peace immediately and finished reading.
For many years I had no TV and loved it. I was a holistic healer, painter, sculptor, and writer and then I began losing my vision. I returned to school to get my MS in counseling to blend with my holistic healing work. Which is what I currently do. However, when I am not working, I use, no, I have used my loss of vision and a stroke that I had 7 months ago as an excuse to be passively engaged with life my purpose and my mission. Can you tell how inspired I am? You have given me what I give to my clients every day ~ hope and a plan of action!
Thank you Michael and Ellen. I have subscribed to your blog and look forward to reading more. I also look forward to going to bed and getting up early and tomorrow, beginning a new chapter in my life; actually it begins right now!