You know exactly what needs doing. You've known all morning. You still haven't started any of it.
Designed for ADHD. Works for everyone.
Everything feels urgent. So nothing gets done.
It's not a motivation problem. For many people with ADHD, overwhelm doesn't look like panic. It looks like paralysis. And it's caused by something more specific than having too much to do.
Loops is a daily coaching app for people with ADHD. It helps to make decisions for you each day, coaching for when the overwhelm wins, and, if you want it, one person quietly in your corner.
Get Your Account, Free Forever Today.
*Terms and Conditions Apply.
*Terms and Conditions Apply.
Three things Loops does for you
One thing at a time
Not a list. One clear next action, chosen for you.
Reduce the decision load
Less time negotiating with yourself about where to start.
Get through the day
Not perfectly. Just through it, with something real done.
Loops is a daily coaching app for people with ADHD.
Today
Today's loops in one list. Mark it done, some, or a rest day, and see what your corner is up to.
How Loops helps
A daily system that makes one decision for you, so you can make the rest.
Most solutions to overwhelm add more to manage: a better system, a clearer list, a more organised approach. For ADHD brains already at capacity, that's the last thing that helps.
Loops works differently. It gives you specific actions each day, removes the decision of where to start, and coaches you through the moments when the overwhelm usually wins. Less to manage. More actually done.
Then it adds the part most apps leave out. One person who gently sees you doing it. More on that just below.
Does any of this sound familiar?
You're not alone in this.
These are the patterns people with ADHD describe most often when it comes to overwhelm.
Everything feels equally urgent, so you can't work out what to do first, so you do something that doesn't matter instead.
You spend an hour setting up a system to manage your tasks and then don't touch the actual tasks.
You were fine until one thing went wrong. Then the whole day collapsed, and by evening you'd done almost nothing.
You've tried the planners, the colour-coded calendars, the apps. They help for a few days. Then they become another thing you've abandoned.
You know this isn't laziness. You just can't explain why you're still sitting here an hour later having not started.
This isn't a willpower problem. ADHD changes how the brain prioritises under pressure, and most tools weren't built with that in mind.
Understanding the pattern
It's not too much to do. It's what happens when the brain can't sort it.
ADHD overwhelm follows specific patterns that more effort and better systems don't fix. Each one has a structural cause.
- 01
Decision paralysis
When everything feels urgent, the brain can't prioritise. So it stops. ADHD impairs the executive function needed to evaluate options and choose a starting point, which means a full to-do list often produces less action than an empty one.
- 02
Cognitive shutdown
Overwhelm in ADHD doesn't always look like stress. It can look like nothing at all. When cognitive load exceeds capacity, ADHD brains can shift into a low-arousal shutdown state: not panicking, not avoiding, just frozen. This isn't a choice and it isn't laziness.
- 03
The failed-system guilt loop
Trying a system that collapses under real life doesn't just waste time. It leaves shame behind. Each abandoned planner, app, or routine adds evidence to the internal story that the problem is personal rather than structural, making the next attempt feel higher stakes and harder to start.
- 04
Early cognitive fatigue
ADHD brains work harder to filter and process the same information. They burn out sooner. What looks like an ordinary day from the outside can be genuinely exhausting by lunchtime, leaving less capacity for the afternoon's decisions than most people would expect.
- 05
The all-or-nothing day
One disruption shouldn't end the day. With ADHD, it often does. A missed meeting, a difficult conversation, or a task that took twice as long can tip an already-stretched system into collapse, turning a hard morning into a lost day.
Loops is designed to interrupt these patterns with the smallest possible intervention: one clear action, before the overwhelm sets in.
Something worth knowing before anything else
Deciding what to do next is itself the task that uses up the energy to do it.
Most advice for overwhelm adds a decision: choose a system, pick a method, prioritise your list. But for an ADHD brain already at capacity, the act of deciding what to do next is an executive function task that draws on exactly the same resources needed to do anything.
This is why "just make a list" so often fails. The list creates new decisions. Deciding which item is most important, which is most urgent, which can wait, requires the kind of sustained cognitive effort that overwhelm has already depleted. The intervention that helps isn't a better list. It's one fewer decision to make before starting.
The part most apps miss
Brains finish for people, not for apps.
Overwhelm is quiet, and it's lonely. From the outside it can look like nothing at all, which makes it hard to explain and easy to carry by yourself. So you do, and the weight builds.
So Loops adds the one thing that reliably keeps ADHD brains going. Another person.
You choose one person you trust. Your partner, a friend, whoever feels safe. When you close a loop, they see it. The one real thing you did today, seen. You decide exactly what they can see, and you can change it any time.
This is the step most people skip with other apps. It's also the one that makes Loops work.
All they have to do is see it
When you close a loop, they see it. The one real thing you did today, seen. They just get to see you get through the day with something done, and cheer you on.
Nothing to manage or decide
They don't add a single thing for you to manage or decide. They don't nag, they don't manage you, they don't even pay. Their side is light on purpose.
You're always in control
You choose who it is. You decide exactly what they can see, and you can change it any time.
The weight eases
On the days it all feels like too much, one person quietly in your corner takes a little of the weight off.
And if you'd rather keep this to yourself, that's completely fine. Solo works on its own. Your person is there for if and when you want it.
Getting started
One thing. Decided for you. Every day.
You don't need to fix the overwhelm before you start. Loops works in the middle of it.
- 1Step 1
Tell Loops what's weighing on you
Name the area where the overwhelm is worst: work tasks, home admin, personal commitments. Plain language. No categories to set up.
- 2Step 2
Choose your person, if you want one
Pick one person you trust to see your progress. You decide exactly what they can see, and you can change it any time. They add nothing for you to manage or decide: they simply see what you already do. This is the step most people skip with other apps, and the one that makes Loops work. It's entirely optional.
- 3Step 3
Get small things to do today
Each day, Loops gives you specific, low-friction actions. Not a list to sort. Not a priority to determine. One thing, chosen to be as easy as possible to start right now. Close the loop, and your person sees it.
- 4Step 4
Get coached when the day goes sideways
Something went wrong and the rest of the day is collapsing? Loops gives you one practical next step rather than a reminder of everything else you haven't done.
- 5Step 5
Get through the day with something real done
One completed action makes the next one easier. Over time, that changes what a normal day feels like.
You don't need to be ready. One action today is enough.
What's inside Loops
Five simple things, working together.
01
One goal, in your own words
The area where the overwhelm is worst, described your way: work tasks, home admin, personal commitments. No categories. Just a clear sense of where you want the load to ease, so Loops knows where to point.
02
Loops that fit your life
A loop is one small, repeating action, at a pace you choose, decided for you so it's one fewer thing to work out. Some run every day, some a few times a week: the one email that's been hanging over you, ten minutes on the pile, the call you've been putting off. A few connect to what's weighing on you. Others are just life, like taking your meds before breakfast. Miss one and nothing is wiped out. The next action is still there, still small, still chosen for you.
03
Your person
The one you choose to see your progress: the loops you close and the days you got through. They add nothing for you to manage, they simply see what you already do.
04
Rewards you can feel
Promise yourself something kind for the moments that matter: a day you got through with something real done, a week you didn't lose to a single bad morning, the first time deciding didn't defeat you. Loops holds the promise and calls it in when you've earned it, and your person gets to see it too.
05
A coach who knows your whole story
An AI coach built for ADHD. It already knows what's weighing on you and where the overwhelm tends to win, so there's no re-explaining yourself from the start. No booking, no waiting room. It's there when something's gone wrong and the whole day is tipping over, with one practical next step, not a reminder of everything else you haven't done.
What people say
From people who recognise themselves in this.
I used to spend half the morning deciding what to do and then feel too exhausted and guilty to do any of it. Loops taking that decision away from me was more useful than any system I'd ever tried.
Freelance consultant
Diagnosed with ADHD at 36
I didn't understand why I kept freezing. I thought I just needed a better planner. It wasn't a planning problem. Loops helped me understand that and gave me something small enough to actually start.
Secondary school administrator
Using Loops for 8 weeks
Getting to the end of a day with one real thing done, when before I'd have nothing, is bigger than it sounds.
Writer and parent, Edinburgh
Pricing
Choose your plan
One small subscription for the coach, the loops and the streaks. Or buy credits when you need them and nothing else.
- 100 coach messages every month. Free gets 30.
- Nothing rolls over, nothing is wasted. It just resets.
- Cancel anytime.
Loops Solo
Monthly$6.99/ month
1 week free, then $6.99 a month.
Your coach, your loops and your streaks. Month to month, cancel whenever.
Loops Solo
Annual$42.99/ year
Works out at $3.58 a month.
Your coach and your streaks, for a year. Roughly half the monthly price.
Or top up
One-off packs. These credits never expire.
100
credits
100 coach message credits
$3.99
300
credits
300 coach message credits
$9.99
1,000
credits
1,000 coach message credits
Best rate
$29.99
Every plan starts with a week free. On iPhone and Android.
A few things worth knowing
Common questions before you start
“I've tried breaking tasks down and it still doesn't help.”
Breaking tasks down is useful. But it doesn't remove the decision of which task to break down first. For many people with ADHD, the block isn't task size. It's the moment of choosing what to start. Loops removes that moment rather than improving what comes after it.
“Do I have to share my progress with anyone?”
No. Solo works perfectly well on its own, and this can stay completely private. If you'd like someone alongside you, they add nothing for you to manage, they just see what you already do. You decide what your person sees, and you can add them whenever you're ready.
“I'm just bad at managing my time.”
Time management is an executive function skill. ADHD specifically impairs executive function. This isn't a character trait. The research is consistent that ADHD changes how the brain filters, prioritises, and sustains effort. A different kind of support is more useful than more discipline.
“What if I'm not diagnosed?”
You don't need a diagnosis. Many people using Loops are on waiting lists, self-identifying, or simply recognise that the patterns here feel familiar. If that's you, Loops is built for you.
“What if the overwhelm is more serious than this?”
It might be, and it's worth taking seriously. If you're experiencing persistent cognitive shutdown, burnout, or distress that's significantly affecting your daily life, speaking with your doctor is a genuinely good idea. Loops works well alongside professional support, but it's not a substitute for it.
FAQ
Questions people often ask
Still wondering if Loops fits how your brain works? Contact us. A real person will reply.
What is Loops?
Loops is a daily coaching app for people with ADHD and anyone building better habits. It combines personalised coaching, daily micro-actions, one person who sees your progress, and accountability in one system. For overwhelm specifically, it helps by removing one key decision each day and coaching you through the moments when the overwhelm usually wins.
Who is 'your person', and do I need one?
Your person is the one you choose to see your progress: the loops you close and the days you got through. They add nothing for you to manage or decide, they simply see what you already do. They don't nag or manage you. You don't have to add one to start, and this can stay completely private, but it's the part that makes Loops work, so we'll gently encourage it when you're ready.
How does Loops help with overwhelm if you have ADHD?
It gives you one specific action each day rather than a list to sort. The decision of where to start has already been made. What's left is a single low-friction thing to do, sized for how the day is actually going.
Why does ADHD cause overwhelm even on ordinary days?
ADHD impairs the executive functions needed to filter, prioritise, and begin. That means ordinary cognitive load, the kind most people manage without noticing, requires significantly more effort from an ADHD brain. The result isn't weakness. It's a system running at a higher baseline cost.
Do I need an ADHD diagnosis to use Loops?
No. Loops is designed first for people with ADHD but doesn't require a formal diagnosis. If the experiences described here feel familiar, Loops is built for you.
Should I see a doctor or therapist as well?
If the overwhelm is significantly affecting your daily life or feels unmanageable, yes. Loops is a daily coaching tool that works well alongside professional support, but it's not a replacement for it. You can find crisis lines and support by country on Find help now.
What if I can't even face the one action Loops gives me?
That's useful information, not a failure. Loops can adjust to give you something smaller. There's no lower limit on how small a useful action can be.
Is Loops available in the UK?
Yes. Loops is available across the UK and is designed around UK contexts and guidance.
How long before the overwhelm starts to ease?
Most people notice a shift within the first two weeks, less in how much they're getting done and more in how much of the day the frozen feeling takes up. Reducing the baseline level of overwhelm usually takes longer, and Loops is designed to make that achievable.
Through today
One real thing done today.
Not a cleared inbox. Not a perfect day. Just through it, with something to show for it, and, if you want, one person who sees you get there.
Get Your Account, Free Forever Today.
*Terms and Conditions Apply.
*Terms and Conditions Apply.
New to Loops? It's a free productivity app built around small daily steps, and almost everything in it costs nothing.
Our sources
Where this comes from
This page draws on ADHD clinical guidelines, research into emotional regulation, time perception and executive function, and real accounts from people who know exactly what needs doing and still can't start. Here's where it comes from.
- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: diagnosis and management — NICE
- Taking Charge of Adult ADHD — Russell A. Barkley
- How Do You Manage Task Initiation Paralysis? — r/ADHD
- The Lived Experiences of Adults With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Rapid Review of Qualitative Evidence — Frontiers
- Evidence of Emotion Dysregulation as a Core Symptom of Adult ADHD: A Systematic Review — PLOS One
- Adult ADHD-Related Poor Quality of Life — PMC
- Time Perception in Adult ADHD: Findings From a Decade, A Review — ResearchGate
- 'Do I Need to Become Someone Else?' A Qualitative Exploratory Study Into the Experiences and Needs of Adults With ADHD — ResearchGate
- “Then Just Get a Planner” — r/ADHD
- Experience of CBT in Adults With ADHD: A Mixed Methods Study — Frontiers
- Australian Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Applications for the Management of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Systematic Review — Frontiers
- I Wish There Was an App That Would Take the Mental Load Of... — r/ADHD
- A Systematic Review of Lived Experiences of Receiving a Diagnosis of ADHD — Sage Journals
Loops is a daily coaching app, not a medical or clinical service. These sources inform how we think about ADHD and overwhelm; they are not an endorsement of Loops by their authors.