anxiety while playing poker

[whangarei]

I get extremely anxious while playing poker. I am normally very laid back and calm, generally happy. But when I am playing poker I just get extremely anxious. Not in a good way that can be channeled into better focus, just like high generalized anxiety. I can feel it like a knot in my stomach. I imagine fear of losing causes it, but this is irrational since I have been a pretty consistent winner for a couple of years.

Does anyone else get this way? Has anyone found a way to handle the anxiety? I often drink while playing and this pretty much takes away the anxiety and as a result I play better. But for many reasons I would prefer not to have to drink to play without significant anxiety.