6yo completely loses the plot after TV/tablet use, what do I do?

My son is 11 and doesn't have screens, he uses them fine at school. We don't even have a TV at home!

He goes to the movies sometimes with friends etc, and he'll watch stuff on a plane when we travel, but certainly not an every day thing.

Why do you think its not realistic to remove an ipad?

It is as simple as no tv and tablet. Because our 5 year old is the same. She has an iPad for flights only and she can watch one Disney film a week with the family. Otherwise she doesn’t see a screen. She cannot watch so much as an episode of Bluey with our absolute ww3 after so it’s just a no in our house

This is going to sound horribly smug and I apologise in advance but we had exactly the same problem. There was 2 weeks of tantrums when tv and tablet removed and now he's back to normal. I bought and borrowed absolutely loads of books and he reads those instead.

Go cold turkey and stick with it.

I am really strict with screen time with my two ( 10 & 8 ) if I get any attitude or bad behaviour then I remove the tablets indefinitely . I think 6 is too young for her to be using the tablet & her behaviour is completely unacceptable , she needs to learn that there will be consequences to her outbursts . Remove the tablet & don’t give in to her pleading etc .

All my kids have there 5 mins left warning and once it's off they know it's off from ages 2-16 no tantrums etc..1 hour a day while I do the pyjama Nd wash routines....some shows I do not allow and horrid Henry being one,...once the little ones are in bed then the olders get to do whatever on there tablets but again restricted time and every other night for those

get her off youtube, seriously. Even if it's the kids one. it's the amount of options and the ooh, what's next, more more more of it all! You can't expect her to be able to self regulate at that age, so get her off it. (IMO)

YouTube shorts is basically TikTok.

You're expecting a six year old to be able to cope with watching that shite, when her brain, and any 6 y o brain isn't capable of doing so. She's not misbehaving or kicking off, she is showing you really clearly with her behaviour that she is not coping with the situation she is being put in.

She just completely lost it, it was like she was completely out of control of her body/brain.

You do what you would do if anything else was resulting in her behaving like this, If she lost the plot and kicked people after she ate bread or drank orange juice, what would you do? You wouldn't give her bread or orange juice. It's really not that much of a headscratcher.

In school they might access screens but I doubt it will be for YouTube.

Mine are 10, 6 and 2. You tube is banned. No one has a tablet or phone. There’s one tv in the living room so i can see what they’re watching. For young children especially it’s important no over-stimulating shows like cocomelon etc there’s a family computer that older two use if needed for homework- in the living room so supervised use for maths etc only.

Is it both tablet and tv? My nearly 6 DD is the same with the tablet (we have taken it away pretty much permanently unless on a very long journey). She is much better able to regulate with the tv though. We always tell her exactly what she is allowed to watch or length of time and what is happening when it goes off.

She 6 .., she doesn’t need it and it’s clearly no good for her, take it away!!

Cold turkey on YouTube and the tablet, it’s not needed and will provoke some dc. If you want screen time watching an episode on tv is less emotionally fraught.

Get rid of Youtube and the tablet.

My rule is we watch TV programmes and movies on the actual television set in the living room like we did in the 90s. I actually don't really limit the amount (obviously it's naturally limited by school, clubs, meals, bedtime but other than that), more the content/style.

Make a fixed plan with her. Start with, say 45 mins a day, tell her if she plays up or complains when you tell her to turn it off she will lose her screen privilidge for the following day, and if she then carries on complaining she loses it for the week. Then STICK TO IT.
Try some role playing beforehand. Get her to pretend how she is going to react when you ask her to stop.

You know the answer 🙄

DC the same, we have to give countdown reminders and it works most of the time, also having a distraction like a snack, fool around. DC is ND and needs extra time to process but this method could be used. Xx

That correlation is definitely there, but often the other way round - high screen time, particularly with certain apps, can cause adhd type symptoms- reduced focus, emotional instability etc. That's not to say they cause adhd, but they can lead to some mimicking symptoms. Our service, which does adhd assessments, stipulates that children go interactive screen free for at least 3 months before they will add to wait list. This includes watching tv as an individual on a tablet, but doesn't include shared tv watching as a family. It seems to be the high speed interactive element which causes the most issues, rather than the screen itself. The playing games, switching from app to app, programme to game, children are just not learning how to keep their attention on 1 activity for an extended period, they dont learn how to be bored and self regulate, but rely on the screens for the quick dopamine hit to regulate instead.

Losing the plot, or losing her temper?

You haven't said whether she actually enjoys watching TV, but the traditional parental reaction would have been that if a "toy" triggers bad behavior, you take it away for a while. That is particularly simple with a tablet, and feasible with a television.

You seem to regarding it as an all-or-nothing permanent ban. It needn't be. Try it for a week or month, and make it clear why you're doing it. Then see what happens. You might also take a good, hard look at whatever material she's watching.

YouTube is the worst. I do not allow it at all - even for my tween. Utter rubbish served up and terrible behaviour when they’re asked to come off it. I banned it years ago and have never looked back.

I’d remove the tablet full stop and very very limited lvingroom only tv.

I have a 6 year old who is the same, and it absolutely is realistic to take away screens. They can create a dopamine addiction, and children that age aren’t equipped to deal with it. Some children handle it better than others. But if yours can’t, just say no screens. You’ll see a difference almost immediately. It doesn’t mean they won’t be able to use technology when they’re older - after all, there are loads of things we let adults do that we don’t let children do

No screens at home. Books perhaos. Carefully chosen by you so you know what is in them.

No youtube, netflix, no american channels, no cartoons. Cbbc is best, and only for an hour at most. You need to watch tv with her, then you know what she is watching.

She can always go and sit on the stairs if she is bothering others having a tantrum, but no screens all round id say.

Not hard in this day and age to take away screen time, especially not for a six year old who cannot regulate her melt downs after using them.
lock away the tablet and tv remote no more screens. Really easy

😂😂😂 100%

Remove the tablet. No need and not inevitable at school. TV time sociably at home as a reward. It seems glaringly obvious to me.