Named Protocols

Mechanical Steps

1. Tap your current energy level (None / Little / Some).
2. Tap your heaviest friction area (Mess, Work, People, Sleep, Body, Everything).
3. Tap available time (2 min, 10 min, 30 min) to generate one doable micro-task, one basic physiological need, and one optional boundary message.

Why It Works

Executive dysfunction collapses when confronted with an open-ended to-do list. Constraining choices to three mechanical taps eliminates decision fatigue, establishes a protective floor for the day instead of an unreachable ceiling, and prevents the shame spiral that fuels depressive paralysis.

Mechanical Steps

1. Grab a single trash bag or grocery sack. Do not bring cleaning sprays, sponges, or vacuums.
2. Walk through the room and collect only indisputable garbage (wrappers, food containers, used tissues) for 10 minutes.
3. Tie the bag shut and immediately take it out to the bin or hallway. Stop when the timer chimes.

Why It Works

Sorting clutter by category overtaxes working memory and triggers ADHD initiation paralysis. Trash-first converts domestic maintenance into a simple binary reflex: garbage or not garbage. Bagging trash removes immediate sensory overwhelm and clears floor space without forcing agonizing sorting decisions.

Mechanical Steps

1. Turn off all sleep trackers, smartwatches, and clocks so you cannot check the time.
2. Get out of bed and move to a dim, comfortable spot with a low-demand sensory activity (soft blanket, quiet reading).
3. Say aloud: "I give myself full permission to rest quietly without sleeping tonight."

Why It Works

Sleep performance anxiety and orthosomnia trigger sympathetic nervous system arousal, actively blocking slow-wave sleep. Removing the demand to sleep eliminates sleep-effort conflict. Quiet wakeful resting provides restorative physiological benefits, dropping heart rate and brainwave activity even without conscious slumber.

Mechanical Steps

1. Inhale deeply through your nose to partially fill your lungs.
2. Take a second sharp, quick inhale at the very top to maximally inflate the alveoli.
3. Release a long, slow, unforced sigh through your mouth for double the inhale duration. Repeat three times.

Why It Works

During acute anxiety or panic, carbon dioxide builds up in the bloodstream as tiny lung air sacs collapse. The two-part inhale re-inflates dormant alveoli, while the prolonged exhalation stimulates the vagus nerve, immediately slowing heart rate and resetting autonomic nervous system balance in under 60 seconds.

Mechanical Steps

1. Choose a short, compassionate message from the library with zero open-ended questions.
2. Explicitly append the magic relief phrase: "No need to reply."
3. Send the text and immediately close the conversation thread with zero expectation of a response.

Why It Works

Depressed and overwhelmed friends often desire connection but suffer from paralyzing social debt. Traditional check-in questions create guilt and cognitive demands. Explicitly lifting the obligation to reply transforms your text from an unpaid chore into an unconditional emotional gift that feels safe to receive.

Mechanical Steps

1. Set a timer for 20 minutes and focus on a single defined zone or task.
2. When the bell chimes, stop immediately—regardless of whether the task is complete.
3. Rest completely for 10 minutes (sit down, drink water, do not clean) before deciding whether to do another cycle.

Why It Works

Popularized in neurodivergent communities, strict time-boxing protects against the dread of cleaning turning into an endless marathon. Hard temporal boundaries prevent hyperfocus burnout, sustain dopamine reserves, and teach the nervous system that domestic effort has a guaranteed, non-negotiable ending point.

Mechanical Steps

1. Pick a neutral, emotionally flat seed word with distinct letters (e.g., B-E-D or C-A-L-M).
2. For each letter, mentally visualize unrelated concrete objects starting with that letter (e.g., B: ball, bell, bicycle, banana).
3. Hold each mental image clearly for 3–5 seconds without constructing a narrative, then advance to the next letter until sleep onset.

Why It Works

Developed by cognitive scientist Luc Beaudoin, Serial Diverse Imagination (cognitive shuffling) scrambles analytical rumination. The brain detects that linear problem-solving has ceased and interprets random visual imagery as a natural biological marker of the hypnagogic sleep transition, allowing slow-wave descent.

Mechanical Steps

1. Acknowledge task paralysis without shame: slide horizontal onto a clean rug or floor next to your bed.
2. Set an audible timer for exactly 2 minutes and focus solely on the sensation of gravity supporting your body.
3. Commit to a single micro-movement (wiggling toes, drinking one sip of water) before requiring yourself to stand.

Why It Works

Morning freeze occurs when waking cortisol spikes alongside overwhelming cognitive overload. Moving from soft bedding to the solid floor provides grounding proprioceptive feedback, interrupts catastrophic rumination loops, and breaks the paralysis cycle by requiring the absolute minimum initiation threshold.

Mechanical Steps

1. Flag any critical legal, financial, or urgent personal emails from the last 7 calendar days.
2. Select every remaining email in your inbox and click "Archive All" or move them to an archive folder labeled "Triage Archive".
3. Deploy a polite, 3-sentence reset auto-reply or direct note explaining a backlog reset and requesting a nudge if an item is still urgent.

Why It Works

A bloated inbox acts as an open psychological debt loop, draining working memory and triggering continuous avoidance anxiety. Declaring mechanical inbox bankruptcy eliminates the mounting backlog instantly, creating a clean cognitive slate while providing a socially acceptable safety valve.

Mechanical Steps

1. Select a neutral, polite cancellation template that clearly declines without detailing personal crises or apologies.
2. Deliver the message via text or email using the direct structure: decision + appreciation + warm closing.
3. Hit send and step away from your device immediately without lingering to justify or over-explain your decision.

Why It Works

Over-explaining cancellations stems from fawn stress responses and social debt guilt, which unintentionally invite debate, unsolicited advice, or deeper shame spirals. A clean, courteous boundary honors your nervous system while preserving mutual dignity and psychological safety.