Screens Hijacked My 3-Month-Old

Photo by Pixabay

It happened faster than we could have predicted. Our sweet three-month-old baby transformed before our eyes—neck craning, body twisting, all to catch a glimpse of the colorful television. When we turned it off, he erupted into wails and thrashing that could only be described as a full-blown tantrum.

We’d never seen anything like it from him before, so we wondered if we’d imagined it. To confirm it wasn't a fluke, the next afternoon, we played a very old Wheel of Fortune game on one of those handheld consoles you plug into the TV.

It wasn't nearly as flashy as modern shows—the screen barely changed. But when we turned it off, he had another fit.

We couldn't ignore it anymore. We had to take the American Academy of Pediatrics guideline of no screens until 2 years old seriously.

Unprepared for the Digital Battlefield

The truth is, we didn't have much experience with babies before bringing our LO home. We didn't even know how to change a diaper. We hadn’t heard about the AAP's screen time recommendations until our kiddo was around 6 weeks old—which doesn't sound like long, but when you're in the parenting trenches, it feels like a lifetime.

The AAP's recommendation isn't arbitrary—research suggests screen exposure can impact language development, attention spans, and sleep patterns in developing brains.

The Slow Creep of Screens

At first, screens didn't matter. When our LO was a newborn, he slept while we watched sports and movies. I didn't feel like having the TV on in the background while we spent time with family counted as "screen time." I was wrong.

As his vision improved and his wake windows grew longer, he couldn’t ignore the lure of the screen. He fought to watch, craning his neck and kicking to get in a better position. Most concerning was how he changed—becoming almost zombie-like, disconnected from us, fixated solely on the screen at any cost. The connection we'd been building seemed to evaporate whenever the TV was on.

Being a life coach, I know that when someone else comes to terms with an addiction or destructive behavior it can be subconsciously threatening. It forces you to face your own shortcomings.

Like any junky, I tried to justify our dependency. I faced him toward the screen during tummy time so he’d have to “work” to see the screen and I acted like it was an accident when he went into a screen-induced trance while “we” (the adults) watched TV. After those two tantrums though, we had to face the music.

Breaking the Cycle

Even before knowing about the AAP guideline, we planned to limit screen use.

I remember as a kid watching cartoons all morning until lunch and late afternoon until bedtime. The more TV I watched, the more I felt like my brain was curdling into mush, but it was hard to stop. I want my sweet baby to build imagination skills rather than make TV the default boredom solution like I did.

So we cut screens out of our LO’s life, even when we’re with family. They weren’t keen on it at first, telling us that “everyone” used to set their babies in front of the TV “back in the day.” I had to point to the research and remind them that screens aren’t small, black and white pixelated boxes in the corner anymore. They’re big, bright and bursting with flashy colors. It’s not the easiest option but we know better than we used to.

Even when our LO isn’t around, we still limit our screen use by deleting social media, spending less time on our phones, and only watching one 30-minute episode of What We Do in the Shadows after we put the baby to bed. We know that our actions will be more influential than the rules we set.

What started as a surprising tantrum became an opportunity to create different patterns for our family. By limiting our own screen time, we're not just following pediatric advice—we're rediscovering the simple joys of connection, conversation, and play.

The screens will always be there, but these early months with our little one won't be. For now, we're choosing to be fully present, one screen-lite day at a time.

Did your child surprise you with their reaction to technology? How has your relationship with screens changed since becoming a parent? Share your story in the comments—I'd love to learn from your experiences too.