Pause: Doom Scrolling Blocker

Pause slows down the apps you open on autopilot by putting a small puzzle in front of them. You choose the apps; when you try to open one, a quick word jumble, mini crossword, sliding tile, ball sort or maze appears, and solving it unlocks the app for fifteen minutes of deliberate use before the pause returns. The idea is that a moment of friction is enough to remember why you picked up the phone.

It is built on Apple's Screen Time controls and frames itself as intention rather than restriction, so a determined thumb will get through. The free version has ads and a smaller set of puzzles, with the rest behind Premium. People who find hard blockers too punishing, and like the idea of a small mental reset instead of a lockout, are the right audience.