As soon as he opens his eyes, he picks the phone that has been playing in his ears all night and starts browsing. Walks around brushing his teeth to it, only puts it down for the shower. In the week, he will then sit and have his breakfast looking at it, either ignoring the kids. Or, more likely, the kids cluster round his phone (I ban screens at the table for dinner).
Then, if it’s a workday (he works from home) he’ll move from his phone to his computer where he’ll work from about 9:30-5:30 and then come off his computer and pick his phone back up and browse that, show it to the kids, then watch tv, then after tv is done and the kids are in bed, will play video games until 2am and then put his podcast or whatever on to fall asleep and the days repeat.
If it’s the weekend, he’ll browse his phone and video games the entire time he’s in the house. Sometimes I feel like I’m prising him out of the house away from what he’d rather be doing - looking at his phone.
Right now, I’m unwell and the kids are watching him play video games and when I asked him to stop he snapped that “it’s a rainy Saturday, what else are they going to do?” before they noticed him gaming, they were playing with toys. The kids, by the way, are fixated by screens and will do anything to get more of them.
Divorce is financially impossible. So don’t suggest that.
He won’t hear me. Gets very defensive. He is addicted. And I don’t know what to do.
Any help or advice?