diff --git a/docker/agent/loop-task.md b/docker/agent/loop-task.md
index cd5a0d79..3f61fa12 100644
--- a/docker/agent/loop-task.md
+++ b/docker/agent/loop-task.md
@@ -120,3 +120,13 @@ turn ends — but sequential tool calls within a turn are fine.
 
 The loop runs on a fixed interval set by the harness, so you do **not** need to
 arm the next wakeup yourself. Spend that attention on the write-up instead.
+
+**And never stop it.** Do not call `ScheduleWakeup` at all — not to re-pace the
+loop, not to tidy up, and above all not with `stop`. Ending the loop ends the
+run: the container exits, and the next iteration never happens. If the cadence
+is genuinely wrong, say so in your reply and leave it to a human — the interval
+is set outside this prompt and is not yours to optimise.
+
+This is not hypothetical. A run ended at 2026-08-29 04:0x with a clean exit 0
+while the display title read "Loop interval optimization", leaving four files of
+work uncommitted in the tree.