How do I block distracting apps on a Mac?

Use a desktop focus app that runs system-wide rather than a single browser extension. FocusJail (a Mac app) lets you approve the apps you're allowed in for a set stretch, then escalates and pulls you back when you drift to anything off the list — across the whole machine, not just one window.

Why don't normal focus apps work for ADHD?

Most rely on a polite, one-tap-dismissable nudge and assume you simply forgot to focus. An ADHD brain reaches for stimulation below the level of conscious choice and learns the dismiss button fast. Real friction plus a novel pattern-interrupt holds where a gentle reminder gets tuned out.

Does FocusJail need an account or internet?

No. Like all Squirrel apps it runs entirely on your Mac with no account, no sign-up, and no network connection. It's a one-time purchase inside a $5.99 pack.

How to Block Distracting Apps on a Mac When Willpower Isn't a Plan

You install a focus app. You feel virtuous for about a day. By Wednesday you've learned exactly which button dismisses it, and your hand does it before you've consciously decided to. Sound familiar?

Why soft blockers don't survive an ADHD brain

Most "focus" tools rely on a gentle nudge: a dimmed screen, a polite "are you sure?", a timer you can snooze. They assume the bottleneck is that you forgot you wanted to focus. That's not the ADHD problem.

The ADHD problem is an interest-driven nervous system that, the instant a task gets boring, goes hunting for stimulation — and a one-tap dismiss button is no obstacle at all. You're not ignoring the nudge on purpose. The reach happens below the level of conscious choice. By the time you notice, you're three tabs deep.

So a blocker that can be dismissed in one motion isn't a blocker. It's a speed bump your brain has already memorised the route around.

What actually works: make the Mac say no, loudly

Two things change the outcome. First, friction that's real — the exit can't be one quiet tap. Second, novelty — because the thing an ADHD brain *can't* tune out is a pattern interrupt.

FocusJail is built on exactly that. You tell it which apps you're allowed in for this stretch. When you drift to something off the list, it doesn't whisper — it escalates from "no" to "no no no" to "NOOOOOO," then pulls you back to where you were supposed to be. It's a little ridiculous, and that's the point: the absurdity is what your brain registers when a calm grey banner would've been invisible.

Because it runs as a Mac app, it can reach across every other app — something a phone-based blocker or a single browser extension can't do. The whole machine is in the jail, not just one window.

How to set it up so you don't fight it

Pick the one task and the few apps it genuinely needs. Not "everything productive" — the actual two or three windows for this job.
Set a length you can believe in. A 25-minute jail you finish beats a 2-hour one you rage-quit.
Let the escalation do its job. The first time it yells, you'll want to disable it. Don't — that flinch is the tool working.
Pair it with a place to dump the distraction instead of chasing it, so the thought has somewhere to go.

Stop negotiating with yourself. FocusJail lives in Squirrel's Focus & Distraction pack, alongside BoringRedirect, Focus Noise, Reading Ruler, and Waypoint — five Mac tools for staying in the room.

Buy once, no subscription, no account, fully offline. Packs are $5.99 each, or $17.99 for all 38. See the Focus & Distraction pack →

Squirrel apps are wellness tools, not medical devices, and don't diagnose or treat any condition.