Q: Can an Orthodox woman watch television if it’s necessary to calm her nerves?
A: Can an Orthodox woman take morphine or other narcotics if it’s necessary to calm her nerves? And the answer is, if she wants to destroy herself, let her go ahead and do it. But really there are better things to do for “nerves” rather than resorting to narcotics. Narcotics might be sometimes needed in extreme cases – but ordinarily, certainly not.
And there are much better things to do than watching TV. Let her take up dressmaking. Dressmaking is soothing for the nerves. That’s just an example. There are many other creative and useful hobbies that women can do.
Actually, “nerves” are only an excuse that a person uses to be able to resort to watching TV. If the TV wouldn’t be in the house you can be sure that they’d find ways and means of soothing their nerves in kosher ways.
Rav Avigdor Miller, Tape # 272 (July 1979)