diff --git a/api/internal/websocket/hub.go b/api/internal/websocket/hub.go
index af9e8e1b..03d4565a 100644
--- a/api/internal/websocket/hub.go
+++ b/api/internal/websocket/hub.go
@@ -42,6 +42,7 @@ package websocket
 import (
 	"log"
 	"sync"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/gorilla/websocket"
 )
@@ -199,33 +200,46 @@ func (h *Hub) ClientCount() int {
 
 // writePump pumps messages from the hub to the websocket connection
 func (c *Client) writePump() {
+	ticker := time.NewTicker(30 * time.Second) // Send ping every 30 seconds
 	defer func() {
+		ticker.Stop()
 		c.conn.Close()
 	}()
 
 	for {
-		message, ok := <-c.send
-		if !ok {
-			// Hub closed the channel
-			c.conn.WriteMessage(websocket.CloseMessage, []byte{})
-			return
-		}
+		select {
+		case message, ok := <-c.send:
+			// Set write deadline to prevent hanging on slow connections
+			c.conn.SetWriteDeadline(time.Now().Add(10 * time.Second))
+			if !ok {
+				// Hub closed the channel
+				c.conn.WriteMessage(websocket.CloseMessage, []byte{})
+				return
+			}
 
-		w, err := c.conn.NextWriter(websocket.TextMessage)
-		if err != nil {
-			return
-		}
-		w.Write(message)
+			w, err := c.conn.NextWriter(websocket.TextMessage)
+			if err != nil {
+				return
+			}
+			w.Write(message)
 
-		// Add queued messages to the current websocket message
-		n := len(c.send)
-		for i := 0; i < n; i++ {
-			w.Write([]byte{'\n'})
-			w.Write(<-c.send)
-		}
+			// Add queued messages to the current websocket message
+			n := len(c.send)
+			for i := 0; i < n; i++ {
+				w.Write([]byte{'\n'})
+				w.Write(<-c.send)
+			}
+
+			if err := w.Close(); err != nil {
+				return
+			}
 
-		if err := w.Close(); err != nil {
-			return
+		case <-ticker.C:
+			// Send ping to keep connection alive
+			c.conn.SetWriteDeadline(time.Now().Add(10 * time.Second))
+			if err := c.conn.WriteMessage(websocket.PingMessage, nil); err != nil {
+				return
+			}
 		}
 	}
 }
@@ -237,6 +251,13 @@ func (c *Client) readPump() {
 		c.conn.Close()
 	}()
 
+	// Set read deadline and pong handler to keep connection alive
+	c.conn.SetReadDeadline(time.Now().Add(60 * time.Second))
+	c.conn.SetPongHandler(func(string) error {
+		c.conn.SetReadDeadline(time.Now().Add(60 * time.Second))
+		return nil
+	})
+
 	for {
 		_, message, err := c.conn.ReadMessage()
 		if err != nil {
@@ -246,6 +267,9 @@ func (c *Client) readPump() {
 			break
 		}
 
+		// Reset read deadline on any message
+		c.conn.SetReadDeadline(time.Now().Add(60 * time.Second))
+
 		// For now, we just log received messages
 		// In the future, we could handle client->server messages
 		log.Printf("Received message from client %s: %s", c.id, message)
diff --git a/ui/src/components/EnhancedWebSocketStatus.tsx b/ui/src/components/EnhancedWebSocketStatus.tsx
index 84d1243a..af1a8227 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/EnhancedWebSocketStatus.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/components/EnhancedWebSocketStatus.tsx
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
  *
  * @component
  */
-import { useState, useEffect, memo } from 'react';
+import { useState, useEffect, useMemo, memo } from 'react';
 import {
   Box,
   Chip,
@@ -60,24 +60,14 @@ function EnhancedWebSocketStatus({
     return 60; // 60 seconds for all subsequent retries
   };
 
-  // Countdown timer for reconnection
+  // Countdown timer for reconnection - DISABLED to prevent sidebar flickering
+  // The countdown state update every second was causing the entire component tree to re-render,
+  // which made the sidebar flicker. Instead, we show a static "Reconnecting..." message.
   useEffect(() => {
     if (reconnectAttempts > 0 && !isConnected) {
+      // Calculate next retry time but don't update state every second
       const delay = getReconnectDelay(reconnectAttempts - 1);
-      let remainingTime = delay;
-      setCountdown(remainingTime);
-
-      const interval = setInterval(() => {
-        remainingTime -= 1;
-        if (remainingTime <= 0) {
-          clearInterval(interval);
-          setCountdown(null);
-        } else {
-          setCountdown(remainingTime);
-        }
-      }, 1000);
-
-      return () => clearInterval(interval);
+      setCountdown(delay); // Set once, don't update every second
     } else {
       setCountdown(null);
     }
@@ -113,9 +103,8 @@ function EnhancedWebSocketStatus({
       return latency ? `Live • ${latency}ms` : 'Live Updates';
     }
     if (reconnectAttempts > 0) {
-      return countdown !== null
-        ? `Reconnecting in ${countdown}s...`
-        : `Reconnecting... (${reconnectAttempts}/${maxReconnectAttempts})`;
+      // Show attempt count only, not countdown (to prevent re-renders)
+      return `Reconnecting... (${reconnectAttempts}/${maxReconnectAttempts})`;
     }
     if (reconnectAttempts >= maxReconnectAttempts) {
       return 'Connection Failed';
@@ -130,12 +119,14 @@ function EnhancedWebSocketStatus({
     return 'default' as const;
   };
 
-  const getStatusIcon = () => {
+  // Memoize the status icon to prevent CircularProgress from restarting on every render
+  // Only recreate when connection status actually changes, not when latency updates
+  const statusIcon = useMemo(() => {
     if (isConnected) return <ConnectedIcon />;
     if (reconnectAttempts >= maxReconnectAttempts) return <ErrorIcon />;
     if (reconnectAttempts > 0) return <CircularProgress size={16} />;
     return <DisconnectedIcon />;
-  };
+  }, [isConnected, reconnectAttempts, maxReconnectAttempts]);
 
   const quality = getConnectionQuality(latency);
   const open = Boolean(anchorEl);
@@ -143,7 +134,7 @@ function EnhancedWebSocketStatus({
   return (
     <>
       <Chip
-        icon={getStatusIcon()}
+        icon={statusIcon}
         label={getStatusLabel()}
         size={size}
         color={getStatusColor()}
@@ -177,7 +168,7 @@ function EnhancedWebSocketStatus({
 
             {/* Connection State */}
             <Box sx={{ display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 1, mb: 2 }}>
-              {getStatusIcon()}
+              {statusIcon}
               <Box sx={{ flex: 1 }}>
                 <Typography variant="body2" sx={{ fontWeight: 500 }}>
                   {isConnected ? 'Connected' : reconnectAttempts > 0 ? 'Reconnecting' : 'Disconnected'}
@@ -197,13 +188,12 @@ function EnhancedWebSocketStatus({
                   </Typography>
                   {countdown !== null && (
                     <Typography variant="caption" color="text.secondary">
-                      {countdown}s
+                      Next retry in ~{countdown}s
                     </Typography>
                   )}
                 </Box>
                 <LinearProgress
-                  variant={countdown !== null ? 'determinate' : 'indeterminate'}
-                  value={countdown !== null ? ((getReconnectDelay(reconnectAttempts - 1) - countdown) / getReconnectDelay(reconnectAttempts - 1)) * 100 : undefined}
+                  variant="indeterminate"
                   color={reconnectAttempts >= maxReconnectAttempts ? 'error' : 'primary'}
                 />
               </Box>