Television. As a writer, I love it. As an ADHD adult married to another ADHD adult, we’ve had our rough patches.
Once upon a time, we subscribed to cable television. Then one member of our household, who will remain nameless for dignity’s sake, couldn’t turn off Glam Fairy even though they should’ve been doing something else.
Because we need to know what happens no matter what, right?
Television has the power to mesmerize us, paralyze us, and steal our time. It usually offers the path of least resistance — a path ADHD’ers know all too well.
Novelist Stephen King had this to say about TV in On Writing:
…TV came relatively late to the King household, and I’m glad. I am, when you stop to think of it, a member of a fairly select group: the final handful of American novelists who learned to read and write before they learned to eat a daily helping of video bullshit. This might not be important. On the other hand, if you’re just starting out as a writer, you could do worse than strip your television’s electric plug-wire, wrap a spike around it, and then stick it back into the wall.
I happen to enjoy well-written, well-executed television, just like I do movies and stage productions. However, I changed our family’s approach to television shortly after the Glam Fairy incident.
Our goal: reject that daily helping of video bullshit without blowing up the television. Happy mediums are hard to find in ADHD Land, but they’re there, I promise. Here’s what works for us.
Ditch cable and throw out the antenna.
Cable has a lot of great shows. It’s also flooded with junk content that won’t add any value to your life. Over-the-air broadcasts aren’t much better, and don’t get me started on TV news. Cancel the cable, freecycle that antenna, and tune your car radio to NPR or start reading the news.
That means no more channel surfing, no more collapsing onto the couch and just “seeing what’s on,” and no more turning the TV on for background noise only to find yourself transfixed 30 minutes later.
Use the cable money to buy streaming services.
Seriously. Hulu and Netflix will set you back less than $20 (total) per month. These services let you approach television more intentionally, filling a queue with shows you choose for their content, not their time slot. The queue never fills up, unlike a DVR, and you don’t have to hurry home for your favorite show.
Tie TV time to chores and busy work.
Frustrated about laundry piling up? I save my folding for evenings when I’ll be home after my son goes to bed. For the most part, I don’t watch TV unless I have laundry to fold, yet I can still get through a series pretty quickly.
Connect TV time with a mindless activity you tend to put off. Multi-tasking isn’t ideal, so shoot for a low-to-no-thinking task like folding laundry. This will help you budget television time and increase your motivation for those tedious chores. The reduction in TV time (via diaper laundry) wasn’t lost on me when my son potty trained!
Reclaim your attention (such as it is).
“Good brain function is vulnerable to the constant stimulation streaming in from cell phones, TV, [and] email…” writes Gina Pera in Is It You, Me, or Adult ADD? Stopping the Roller Coaster When Someone You Love has Attention Deficit Disorder. “Some of us habituate to the stimulation as if it were a drug, growing more easily bored or at loose ends when lacking our fix.”
And what if your version of “good brain function” frustrates and demoralizes you on a daily basis? It’s time to stop channel surfing.
Television can be a serious challenge for ADHD’ers of all ages. How do you keep television watching under control in your household? Share your tips in the comments!
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