Sorry for any inconvenience caused by this issue.

A common cause of this issue is an issue with an addon on Firefox. You can temporarily disable your addons by using Firefox safe mode. This will help us to see if the addons are the cause of your issue.

For more information on troubleshooting issues with safe mode, please refer to this Mozilla support article:

• Troubleshoot extensions, themes and hardware acceleration issues to solve common Firefox problems

There are also various other ways to improve performance on Firefox. You can find them in the following Mozilla support articles:

• Quick fixes if your Firefox slows down
• Firefox hangs or is not responding - How to fix
• Fix Firefox using too much memory or CPU resources
• Fix Firefox using too much memory or CPU resources

Hopefully you can get Firefox running fast again. Let us know if you require further assistance.

We followed the suggestion to open in Safe Mode without the addons, but I still have the constant freezing every 2 seconds. I am now having trouble opening dropdown boxes to choose a function. It freezes up before I can choose the next step (copy, paste, shut down, etc). Could this be an indicator my computer is about to die on me?

In some cases, it can be a sign that your computer is dying. However, I think that it is a bit premature to be worrying about this just yet.

Can you please explain when this issue first began? Can you also provide a brief description of the hardware in your computer system (ex. RAM, CPU, etc.)?

In some cases, malware or other infections on your computer can cause performance issues. You can try these free programs to scan for malware, which work with your existing antivirus software:

• Microsoft Safety Scanner
• MalwareBytes' Anti-Malware
• Anti-Rootkit Utility - TDSSKiller
• AdwCleaner (for more info, see this alternate AdwCleaner download page)
• Hitman Pro
• ESET Online Scanner

Further information can be found in the Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware article.