Gentle Pause Autor: Raincat

A Firefox add-on for health anxiety sufferers. When you open Google, the add-on checks in with you whether you were planning to look for explanations for your symptoms, and urges you by a configurable mindfulness exercise, to not do so. I've created this for myself, but realized that there might be more people who could benefits from a gentle hand.

• Runs in both normal and private windows.
• After you confirm, it asks if you're ready before any activity begins. Nothing starts on its own.
• Breathing exercise with a live cycle counter showing how many cycles remain.
• Gentle breathing option for anyone who finds holds uncomfortable: a no-hold in-for-4, out-for-6 pattern instead of 4-7-8.
• Calming puzzle option (default off): a small nature jigsaw using copyright-free photos of nature and animals from Wikimedia Commons, with a locally drawn scene as a fallback if it can't reach the internet.
• "Continue to Google anyway" starts a 10-second reconsider countdown you can cancel.
• "No exit" removes the continue option in both normal and private windows (you can still close the tab and step away).
• Pinnable toolbar button with a quick menu: status, quick toggles, and a link to full settings.
• Master off switch that first asks you to breathe for five minutes (or finish a puzzle), so switching it off is never a rushed decision.
• Appears once per tab. Collects and sends nothing; everything stays on your device.

Toolbar icon → Open full settings, or about:addons → Gentle Pause →
Preferences. Set the breathing cycle count, gentle breathing, the puzzle
activity, the no-exit toggle, and the master switch.


Gentle Pause works on Firefox for Android too, with a few mobile differences:
- There is no toolbar to pin to on mobile. The Gentle Pause menu lives in the browser's three-dots menu, under the extension.
- Settings open from Menu then Add-ons then Gentle Pause then Settings.
- To allow it in private tabs: Menu then Add-ons then Gentle Pause, and turn on "Run in private tabs". The welcome page shows these steps automatically on Android.

Feature requests are welcome.

Tips are welcome https://ko-fi.com/littlerainboots <3