2 year old addicted to tv and wants to watch ot non stop

[HoneyBunnii]

Hi everyone, i am a first time mum with a 2 year old and hoping i can get some help..
I have a 2 year old son who is addicted to tv (mainly super simple songs and those videos of toy fruits being cut) he just wants to keep watching them all day and if i turn the tv off he cries and cries and cries.
I tried to ignore it but he wont stop and doesnt eat.
It got so bad at one point that i almost broke down in tears.. i am 5 months pregnant and i dont want to deal with this all over again with my next chind and that is why i am trying to break this habit so desperately.
It started when he was around 8 months and i had no help from family and my husband was working overtime and i have a couple of physical disabilities so when my health would get really bad to the point where i needed a break i would resort to the tv to keep the little one entertained for a while so i can rest alittle but i never knew it would get this bad!
He will be starting daycare (afternoons 3 times a week) so i am wondering if he will forget the tv once he starts going to daycare? Can anyone else please suggest any ideas? Sometimes he just wants the tv on in the background while he is playing with his toys even though he isnt watching it..
I have considered getting rid of the tv altogether and putting it in storage but i am afraid of how my toddler will react.. 😔

Someone please 🥺

Realistically, if you cut it out entirely, it will probably be very hard going for a few days and then, yes, he will adapt.

That said, a little bit of TV used strategically can be very helpful in getting everyone through the day and the necessary things done, so personally, I wouldn't jump straight to a full ban. For us at this age, what worked when screen time started creeping up and she was asking for it more and more was having specific times when our daughter was allowed to watch – for example, whilst I'm cooking dinner in the evening, and also whilst I'm trimming her nails. She adjusted quite quickly and without much fuss to 'not now, but you can watch that at X time', although you do have to be ready with the distractions the first few days! She also can cope with the idea that the rules occasionally change, so we can still do things like watch a Christmas film as a treat or allow more screen time when ill or travelling. Some children might find that harder, though.

If he likes songs, have you tried just playing the music for him, especially if he's wanting background music whilst he plays? We're pretty flexible with putting music on if they ask, unless the noise is specifically going to be a problem.

@skkyelark thanks so much for your reply 😢 it means alot.. i tried to phase it out slowly before but he just kept crying even if i distracted him he just went back to crying after 10 or 15 mins of playing.. what we have done today is let him watch an hour of his shows and then after that let his dad watch sports hoping DS will be bored and forget the tv.. he has been playing with toys but keeps coming upto me trying to look for the remote and i have had to say no so many times today and then end up with him crying again 😣 we are also thinking of moving his toy box to the other room away from the tv so he is away from the tv while he is playing.. i am just really hoping once he starts daycare even if its just afternoons 3 times a week he might start to slowly find tv less interesting and finding daycare and playing with toys more interesting

I tried the songs on their own but he got frustrated when he saw that the tv was not on and he could not see the characters dancing 🤦‍♀️

Moving his toys away from the TV is probably a good idea, if you have somewhere else for them that's still reasonably convenient for you to hang out as well.

I think however you cut down, there are going to be some (very) tricky days at the beginning. I think you can make it slightly easier by framing it in it terms he can understand. He still won't like the change, but at least he'll understand what to expect. 'An hour' won't mean anything to him – can you frame it in terms of episodes? (My eldest has just turned 4, and this is still how we do it – you can watch 1 episode of X or 2 episodes of Y, and then it's time to do Z). I'd also warn him when it's the last episode. Similarly, I'd try telling him he can watch more 'after lunch' or some other element of his routine that he'll recognise, avoiding things like 'later' or 'in a bit'.

The music, you could try telling him it's a choice between this or nothing and see which he prefers.

It's a hard adjustment, but you can do it – he will get used to it.

@skkyelark i guess i will try moving stuff to the other room first and see how it goes, he just turned two so telling him how many episodes he can watch wont make sense to him, i think i might just try using phrases related to the times he has his food etc. Like you said as i think he might understand that better. Its going to be a long journey as he has just turned 2 and is still developing his communication skills at this point so maybe in about 6 months time when his language skills progress he would be able to process things easier when it comes to telling him why he cant do certain things .. maybe the fact that there will be a new baby might also distract him from this habit as well.. thank you for your advice though i really appreciate it 😊