Big Loss in One Session

[GiantBuddha]

The thing about losses of this magnitude is that other players start playing better against you. They see you as beatable and you become readable because you 'never have anything'. Your semibluffs stop working, and your marginal hands are no longer marginal. I've come back from 50BB down to post a 70BB win by the end of the session, though, so it really depends on the game. A lot of players underestimate variance, and seem to think that their short term results carry more significance than they actually do.

[Rbower]

That's a good point. I know when I'm winning people react to that also and will lay down more hands because 'I always have it'. I've also watched my stack go up 30 big bets, go down to negative 15 bets and then back up to 15 big bets by the end of the session.

[GiantBuddha]

Yeah. Those sessions are super tough. I always sleep for like fourteen hours after one of those and have terrible nightmares. Seriously depleted testosterone levels. But the upswings more than make up for it. Hang in there, keep reading books, keep thinking about the game, and always play as well as you can. Self awareness can be a poker player's best friend. If you know when you're on tilt, when you're likely to go on tilt, and how to avoid it as best you can, your wallet will thank you.