Free if-then urge plan builder

By Mohamed Elatabany, developer of Ballast · Updated 5 November 2026

An if-then plan decides in advance what you'll do when a familiar situation shows up: "If it's late and I'm in bed with my phone, the phone goes on the kitchen charger." Pick a trigger below, write your plan and print it. This page sends nothing anywhere.

My urge plans

then I will

Because

Nothing leaves your browser. There are no accounts and no analytics. This page's security policy blocks network requests from its script, and you can check it yourself in the page source. Unless you tick the box, your plans are gone when you close the tab.

How to write one that holds up

Name the moment you can actually notice. "When I'm in bed and reach for my phone" beats "when it gets hard".
Make the "then" physical. A place, an object, a first step. "Phone on the kitchen charger" works at 1am. "Be stronger" doesn't.
Keep it small enough to happen. If it takes planning to carry out, it's too big.
Write it on a calm day, and change it whenever you learn something. A plan that didn't hold has told you something useful.
Start with one or two. Your most common situation matters most.

Starter plans by trigger

These are starting points to edit, adapted from the plans in the Ballast app. A plan tends to work better when it's yours.

Ten common triggers and starter plans. Edit them until they sound like you.
Trigger	If	Then, for example
Late night	If it's late and I'm in bed with my phone,	the phone goes on the kitchen charger and the book on my pillow opens. lights out and phone off at the same moment.
Stress	If I notice stress building,	I go out the front door for five minutes with no phone in my pocket. I write the one thing stressing me on paper and set a ten-minute timer to start on it.
Boredom	If I'm bored with nothing planned,	I put my shoes on and walk one lap of the block, then decide what's next. I set a kitchen timer for twenty minutes and start the chore I've been dodging.
Loneliness	If I feel lonely,	I text one person a real question, not just 'hey'. I take myself somewhere with people in earshot: kitchen table, café, front step.
Tired	If I'm tired and still up,	the phone stays on the hallway charger and I go to bed. I brush my teeth now, which tells me the day is over.
Anxiety	If I'm anxious,	I put my feet flat on the floor and take four long breaths, each exhale slower. I write the worry as one sentence on paper.
Social media	If scrolling starts to turn into something else,	I close the app, log out, and put the phone face-down across the room for ten minutes. I swap the screen for a kettle: phone down, tea on, back in five.
Drinking	If I've been drinking,	the phone stays in my jacket pocket, not on the table, for the rest of the night. the phone sleeps in the kitchen when I get home.
Argument	If I've just had an argument,	I walk once around the block before I do anything else. I type the angry version in Notes, delete it, then decide what actually needs saying.
Home alone	If I'm home alone and restless,	I leave the house for twenty minutes: coffee, corner shop, anywhere with other people. my laptop and phone stay in the living room and the bedroom stays screen-free.

Does this actually help?

If-then plans are also called implementation intentions. A 2006 meta-analysis by Gollwitzer and Sheeran found a medium-to-large effect (d≈0.65) on reaching goals of many kinds. They haven't been tested on pornography specifically, so this is a reasonable bet, not an established treatment. The full evidence summary covers what's been tested directly.

The plan is for the urge. For what comes after, see what to do after a slip, and for the setup around it, the free Screen Time filter steps.

When to look for more help

Ballast is a self-tracking and educational tool, not treatment. None of these is a diagnosis, but any one is a fair reason to book a conversation: you've tried to cut back several times and it keeps coming back; it's eating into sleep, work or time with people; it has become the main way you deal with stress or low mood; or you feel low or anxious most days.

A therapist. Look for someone who works with CBT or ACT and is comfortable talking about sex.
Your GP or family doctor. A good first stop if you're unsure. They can check what else might be going on and refer you on.
SMART Recovery. Free peer meetings, online and in person, built on practical CBT-style tools.
SAA. A twelve-step fellowship with free meetings in many countries and online.

If things feel very dark: if you are having thoughts of harming yourself, contact your local emergency services or a crisis line now. In the US, call or text 988. Elsewhere, findahelpline.com lists free lines by country.

Questions

Is this tool private?

Yes. It runs entirely in your browser. There is no account or analytics, and the page's security policy blocks network requests. Plans are only kept if you tick the box, and then only in this browser.

What is an if-then plan?

A decision made in advance, in the form "if this situation happens, then I will do this specific thing". Psychologists call it an implementation intention. It means you don't have to decide in the moment.

How many plans should I write?

Start with one or two for your most common situations. A short list you remember does more than a long list you don't.

Sources

Gollwitzer PM, Sheeran P. Implementation intentions and goal achievement: a meta-analysis of effects and processes. Adv Exp Soc Psychol, 2006.