I’m Kayla. I’m a Muslim woman. And yes, I’ve wrestled with porn. It felt lonely and loud. Shame sat in my chest like a stone. I wanted help that fit my faith. I wanted tools that didn’t treat me like a machine.
So I tested a bunch of tools and programs over a year. Some were faith-based. Some were just solid tech. I kept notes. I wrote down what worked on good days and what saved me on bad nights. I compiled the full experiment in a separate deep-dive—I Tried Islamic Tools for Porn Addiction—What Helped Me, What Didn’t—for anyone who wants every gritty detail.
Here’s the truth, simple and plain.
The Starter Kit I Actually Used
I didn’t try everything on earth. I tried what I could stick with.
- Purify Your Gaze (online Muslim program)
- Covenant Eyes (accountability app) with CleanBrowsing DNS (filter)
- Canopy (AI filter) on my phone
- Brainbuddy (habit app) for streaks and daily tasks
- The book “Purification of the Heart”
- A tiny paper journal I kept in my purse
- Fasting on Mondays and Thursdays when I had the energy
- A buddy from my masjid who checked in once a week
That mix sounds like a lot. It wasn’t. I stacked them slow. Two things first. Then one more. Like building with blocks, not bricks.
Purify Your Gaze — Gentle, Faith-First, Not Cheap
I did Purify Your Gaze for eight weeks. There were lessons on shame, triggers, and tawbah. The tone was kind. No yelling. No scare charts. The coach I had didn’t make me feel dirty. We talked about nervous system stuff, not just “be stronger.” I liked that.
Real moment: It was 3 a.m., and I felt that rush. You know the one. I opened the course notes, did a short dhikr breath (4 counts in, 6 out), and messaged my coach. He replied by morning. That reply didn’t fix me. But it kept me from the spiral that night.
What I didn’t love: Price. It’s not cheap. Also, some parts felt slow. I wanted faster steps, more tools-per-week. Still, for faith fit and heart care, it worked.
Covenant Eyes + CleanBrowsing — Boring, But It Saved Me
I set up CleanBrowsing DNS on my phone and laptop. It blocks adult stuff at the network level. Then I used Covenant Eyes for accountability. I picked my buddy. She got reports. I hated that idea at first. Then I loved it.
Real moment: I was in a hotel with sketchy Wi-Fi. I typed something risky. The page blocked. My face burned. I made wudu in the tiny sink and prayed two quick rak’ahs. The urge passed. It wasn’t magic. It was speed bumps. And speed bumps help.
Cons: Overblocking hits normal sites sometimes. It broke one cooking blog I like. Also, Covenant Eyes slowed my phone a bit. Not terrible. Just a bit sticky.
Canopy — Smart Filter, Battery Hog
Canopy caught stuff the DNS filter missed. It scans images on the fly, which is pretty cool. It also drains battery. On heavy days, my phone felt warm and tired. False positives were rare but funny. It once blurred a swimsuit ad so hard that it looked like abstract art.
Good for families. Good for phones. But don’t set it and forget it. It works best with check-ins and clear rules.
Brainbuddy — Streaks That Don’t Judge
Brainbuddy gave me daily tasks. Short videos. Little wins. A streak timer. I’m not a streak person. But the checklists helped on blah days. I didn’t treat it like a cure. I treated it like a coach who shows up even when I don’t want to talk.
Tip: I lined the tasks with prayer times. Fajr task. Dhuhr check-in. ‘Asr stretch. That rhythm felt like a rope I could hold.
Purification of the Heart — My Quiet Companion
This book sat by my bed. I read one page a night. Sometimes less. It gave me words for what I felt: desire, pride, despair, hope. It didn’t scold me. It called me up. I underlined a line on despair and made it my lock screen for a week.
Also, journaling helped. After Jumu’ah, I wrote three things:
- What triggered me this week?
- What worked?
- What will I try before Maghrib today?
Simple. Real. No filters needed.
Faith Pieces That Actually Moved the Needle
Prayer on time. Not perfect. Just on time, more days than not. Short duas when the urge hit. A cold splash of water and a walk around the block. Fasting on Mondays and Thursdays gave me space from mindless scrolling. Not every week. Some weeks I just ate dates and kept going. If you’re curious about the nuts and bolts of turning salah and dua into real-world guardrails, my longer reflection—Prayer for Porn Addiction: What Helped Me, What Didn’t—breaks that process down.
You know what? Community mattered most. A buddy who gets it. Someone who doesn’t flinch. We met for coffee after ‘Isha. We said the quiet parts out loud. That took the sting away.
For some readers, the isolation piece is the loudest trigger. If you don’t yet have a trusted masjid-buddy, you might feel safer testing the waters for real-life connection online first. One place people turn to is the adults-only matching site JustHookup—there you can set clear boundaries, practice honest conversation, and remind yourself that intimacy involves real human faces rather than endless pixels, which can be a healthier step away from compulsive porn browsing. If you’re based in the Carolinas and would rather explore discreet, in-person meet-ups, check out the local listings at Backpage Fort Mill where you’ll find community posts that make arranging real-world interactions simpler and clearer, giving you another avenue to replace anonymous scrolling with accountable, face-to-face connection.
Hard Moments I Still Remember
- Hotel Wi-Fi night: DNS saved me, then wudu, then bed.
- Ramadan week two: Great streak. After Eid? Crash. I felt gross. I told my buddy. We set a tiny reset: no phone in bed for three nights. That helped more than I expected.
- Work-from-home slump: Lonely, rainy day. I wrote “HALT” on a sticky note: hungry, angry, lonely, tired. I was two of the four. I ate soup, called my sister, and the urge faded.
None of this made me superhuman. It made me honest. For an even rawer look at the day-to-day grind, I put together My Honest Take: Fighting Porn Addiction as a Muslim—it’s basically the journal I wish I’d had when I started.
What Fit My Deen And What Felt Off
Fit well:
- Language of tawbah and mercy
- Tools that don’t shame
- Real plans for urges, not just rules
- A buddy of the same gender, chosen by me
Felt off:
- “Just be strong” talk (that never worked)
- Mixed spaces for very raw shares (I wanted clear boundaries)
- Tech-only fixes with no heart work
Costs, Privacy, And Small Frictions
Money adds up: filters, apps, coaching. If you’re on a budget, start cheap. CleanBrowsing has a free plan. Use Screen Time or Focus modes on iPhone. Put your router in the living room. Low-tech steps still count.
Privacy: Choose a buddy you trust, and talk about what reports show. Keep control. You can pause stuff when you travel, but tell someone. Secrets are where slips love to live.
Quick Picks (If You’re Like Me)
- Need faith-first support? Purify Your Gaze helped my heart, not just my habits.
- Need strong guardrails? CleanBrowsing + Covenant Eyes made me pause, then breathe.
- Need gentle daily structure? Brainbuddy gave me small wins without shame.
- On a budget? Use free DNS, Screen Time, and a real buddy. Add fasting when you can.
If you’re a data-nerd like me and want to see how dozens of blockers and accountability apps stack up head-to-head, check the charts over at Wild Porn Reviews; they give raw numbers without the guilt trip.
Small Habits That Stuck
- Phone sleeps in the kitchen, not the bedroom.
- Shower and wudu after a close call. Fresh start, right away.
- Qur’an audio during late-night work. Soft, steady, grounding.
- Two-minute walk when the urge spikes. Sunlight if I can. Hallway if I can’t.
Final Take — It’s Not Magic, But It’s Mercy
I didn’t get “fixed.” I got supported. I still