Project
💢 Fuck This Shit Button
Sometimes you don't need guided breathing. Sometimes you just need to press a button and let it all out.
Why I built it
Calm Down Button exists for the moments when you need to breathe through something. But some days, that's not the right tool. Some days you're just done — and a serene breathing animation would make things worse, not better.
Fuck This Shit Button is the other side of the coin. A cathartic release with zero judgment and zero friction. Press it, feel it, move on.
Designed for
- Moments of pure, unfiltered frustration
- People who find calm tools patronising mid-meltdown
- Coworkers, deadlines, traffic, bad code, all of it
How it works
- You press the button.
- Something satisfying happens — visually, audibly, viscerally.
- You feel slightly better. You move on with your day.
The interaction is deliberately short and punchy. No lingering, no follow-up, no suggestions to try meditation instead.
UX decisions
- No login, no account
- No calm-down suggestions
- No data stored or tracked
- Works on mobile without any setup
- Accessible — button is keyboard and screen-reader friendly
Core philosophy
Three principles behind every decision in the product.
Honest about the moment
Not every bad moment calls for mindfulness. Sometimes acknowledging the chaos is more useful than reframing it.
Zero moralising
No suggestions, no nudges, no wellness messaging. You're an adult. You know what you need. The button just helps.
Fast exit, clear head
The goal is to get you out the other side faster — not to keep you engaged. Thirty seconds and back to work.
What I learned
- Catharsis is a legitimate UX pattern
- Tone and copy carry more weight than most UI elements
- The opposite of "calm" doesn't have to be "harmful"
- Small tools with a clear point of view find their audience
Future directions
- Sound variations (keyboard smash, thunder, etc.)
- Haptic feedback on mobile devices
- Button customisation — bring your own frustration target
- A counter: how many times the world pressed it today
Having one of those days?
Fuck This Shit Button is there for the moments when nothing else fits. No breathing, no journalling, no positive reframing. Just a button that gets it.
Press it. Feel better. Carry on.