ShieldBrain: Reels Counter and Blocker

Inspiration

Short-form content is designed to keep us scrolling. A few minutes can easily turn into an hour without realizing how many Reels I've actually watched.

I wanted to build a tool that makes this behavior visible and gives users more control over their scrolling. That idea became ShieldBrain, an app that tracks how many Reels a user has scrolled through and can block the Reels screen when the user reaches their limit.

What I Built

ShieldBrain helps users become more aware of their short-form content consumption by:

Counting Reels as they scroll. Tracking usage to show how much short-form content they're consuming. Blocking the Reels screen when they reach a limit. Providing a simple intervention to break the endless-scrolling cycle.

Instead of simply telling users to "use their phone less," ShieldBrain gives them a practical way to recognize and interrupt the habit.

How I Built It

I focused on creating a lightweight experience that can monitor Reel usage, maintain a running count, and trigger a blocking mechanism once the user's limit is reached.

The project combines usage tracking with a user-controlled blocking system, with the goal of making the intervention simple, immediate, and easy to understand.

Challenges

One of the biggest challenges was figuring out how to reliably recognize Reel-scrolling activity while keeping the experience simple for the user. I also had to think carefully about when the blocking mechanism should activate and how to make it feel like a helpful intervention rather than an annoying restriction.

What I Learned

Building ShieldBrain helped me understand that solving digital-wellbeing problems isn't only about tracking data, the important part is turning that data into an actionable intervention.

I also learned how to design around real user behavior, balance automation with user control, and build a focused product around a problem that many people experience every day.

What's Next

I want to make ShieldBrain smarter and more customizable by adding better usage insights, flexible limits, and more ways for users to control how and when Reels are blocked.

My goal is simple: help people scroll intentionally instead of endlessly.