How long does an urge last?

Many urges peak and fade within 10–30 minutes if you don't act on them. Timing them shows you your own pattern.

What is urge surfing?

A mindfulness skill: you notice the urge, breathe, and let it rise and fall without acting on it.

Does the Raze app have this timer?

The urge timer is a free web tool. In the Raze app you can log relapses and track streaks and daily challenges.

What should I do while the timer runs?

Move to another room, breathe slowly, drink water, or step outside. Avoid lying in bed with your phone.

No. The timer runs in your browser.

Urge Timer: Ride Out an Urge in 10 Minutes

Written by Muneeb Rana · Medically reviewed by Safi Allah Khan · Last updated 24 October 2026

Quick answer: An urge timer helps you wait out a craving instead of acting on it. Rate the urge from 0 to 10, start a 10-minute countdown, follow the breathing and grounding prompts, then rate it again. Most urges rise, peak and fall within minutes; timing one shows you that in real life.

How to use the urge timer

Rate the urge 0–10.
Press start (default 10 minutes; 5 or 15 also available).
Stand up and move to a different room if you can.
Follow the prompts: slow breathing, noticing body sensations, naming five things you see.
When the timer ends, rate the urge again.
Log the urge and what helped in Raze.

Why urge surfing works

Urge surfing comes from mindfulness-based relapse prevention: you observe the craving like a wave instead of fighting or obeying it. A randomized trial found mindfulness-based relapse prevention reduced relapse over the longer term compared with treatment as usual in substance use (Bowen et al., 2014). Research on porn specifically is limited, but the skill transfers: notice, breathe, wait.

Prompts the timer uses

0:00  rate urge (0-10)
0:30  breathe in 4s, out 6s (x6)
2:00  where do you feel it? describe without judging
4:00  name 5 things you see, 4 you hear
6:00  what triggered this? (tired, bored, lonely, stressed)
8:00  choose next action: walk, shower, call, water
10:00 rate urge again; log result

Worked example

Late at night Daniel rates an urge at 8/10. He starts the timer, goes to the kitchen and follows the breathing prompt. At 6 minutes he notices he's tired and lonely, not aroused. At 10 minutes the urge is 3/10. He logs it, puts the phone on charge in the kitchen and goes to bed. Over two weeks his logs show most urges happen after 11 pm, so he changes his late-night phone routine.

If the urge doesn't fade

Run the timer again and change something bigger: go outside, take a cold shower, call or text someone. The 5-minute urge toolkit has more options. If urges feel constant and distressing, talk to a professional; see porn addiction help.

Download Raze free. Optional in-app purchase.

Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

Sources

Bowen et al. (2014), Mindfulness-based relapse prevention RCT, JAMA Psychiatry: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov (accessed 24 October 2026)
Mayo Clinic: Mindfulness exercises: mayoclinic.org (accessed 24 October 2026)
Witkiewitz & Marlatt (2004), Relapse prevention for alcohol and drug problems, American Psychologist: doi.org (accessed 24 October 2026)

Urge Timer

Urge timer