My addiction to TV started with Saturday morning cartoons. I needed my dose of The Smurfs . . . along with a warm bottle of milk. I may have gotten off the bottle, but my TV love continued.
As I got older, I discovered shows like Who’s The Boss and Growing Pains. Followed by the period in high school where I couldn’t go to bed without knowing David Letterman’s Top 10. My university years will also be remembered as the Dawson’s Creek and Felicity years.
Then I moved out on my own. No more parental guidance. I could watch TV all the time if I wanted – and I did. Many a weekend was wasted away being glued to the tube. Half the time thinking, who watches this stuff?! Oopsie. Telling myself that I would get up and do something else . . . just as soon as this show was over. But then the next show would hook me in. It was a repeating cycle.
It all came to a head with Reality TV. I couldn’t miss it. I had to be home to watch who was getting voted off the island. I knew I had a problem. Moderation was not the answer.
the benefits of sobriety
In 2009, I cut the cable and I haven’t looked back. Here’s what I’ve gained since making the cut:
- Time. To read, cook, exercise, declutter, socialize, just be.
- Silence. Quiet is good.
- Flexibility. No longer need to rush home to watch “must see TV” . . . thus improving social life.
- Creativity. Focus on coming up with new ideas and endeavors instead of wasting the day away on the couch.
- Sleep. Going to bed earlier since not staying up watching infomercials and reruns.
- Health. More time to exercise, less snacking.
- Money. Not having cable is free.
I feel that watching TV mindlessly is the same as overconsuming on physical stuff. There must be a correlation!
i still get the itch
Whenever I spend, say the weekend with my sister (aka Enabler), and I’m confronted with my addiction again, I see myself falling into my old trap. It’s like a trance comes over me – I only see the TV. You could be trying to have a conversation with me, but I don’t hear you. So I know I’m not cured. But my tolerance is lower too. I can handle a couple of hours and then I need to turn it off. It’s . . . too much noise.
Why not turn off the tube and take part in Earth Hour this Saturday, March 31st at 8:30pm? It could change your life.
Full disclosure: I still own a TV. I get DVDs from the library from time to time. Overall, I’d say I average a few hours a week, if even. I can handle rentals, but not 24/7 access.
Hey Sandra, despite the endearing, humorous and quirky tone, I think there’s a very important message in your blog post which many people would do well to listen and learn from – specifically, our dependence on the media and how it can distort our personalities and lives.
Like you, I also gave up television in 2009 and have never looked back. I remember quite vividly when my cable was cut off, right in the middle of Obama’s inauguration – ha ha. However, I had a different reason for ditching the TV than you. I just thought North American television was awful with all its commercials, reality television, celebrity gossip and doom and gloom news. For me, it was a waste of money.
Also, like you, I still have my DVD player, for my collection of music DVDs, natural world and astronomy documentaries and artistic films. And I occasionally borrow DVDs from the library. In addition, I use the internet for news and weather.
As your blog post highlighted, turning off the TV frees up your life for other things – for me that’s meant more reading, music listening, studying, healthy eating, exercise and artistic pursuits. Now, I can’t remember what my life was like before switching off the television.
That being said, I did get into Mad Men in a BIG way. I borrowed seasons 1-4 from the library and had 3-5 hour binges watching them!! I suppose that undoes all my good work of giving up TV in the first place!!
Keeping those blog posts coming…
Great comment! I do agree that for many people, including my former self, TV is a REAL addiction. My personality and habits were not very healthy when I was glued to the tube. I have since relapsed as well. Funny enough, I also fell for the charms of Donald Draper and the gang. But that’s been my only major binge since cutting my cable. I think the big difference is that I CHOSE to watch it, instead of the other way around…and I’m perfectly happy to wait until Season 5 is available to borrow from the library
I do not have a TV or cable and I do not mind 100%. Any shows I want to watch, I can watch online (or through Netflix). I have some shows I get caught up in (I have one drug and its name is The Doctor) but I have been amazed to find that even if I don’t keep up on the shows I like, I’m still happy and alive.
My social life used to consist of eating and watching tv, every day, with my husband. He’s now my ex-husband and my tv-dependence is also something of the past. Good luck with tv rehab!