[RiverMustelid]

I have had a 15 buyin downswing, 10 buyin, and two 8s, in the last 6 months. This is against a background of 6 winning months (1 breakeven after rakeback etc. (: )

It is correct to question yourself. Have the games you are playing stiffened up? Are you on tilt? Have you disrupted something in your style?

In each case deeper PT analysis suggested that a lot of my swings were variance related, of the form JetSet lays out well above.

However, in my case, there is definitely some tilt involved. I am certainly victim of the "of course TPTK gets busted by a set" wallowing in self-pity, when normally you might have lost $60 and allowed yourself to get stacked. Or the paying off a flush draw when you know its hit just to "prove" how unlucky you are.

When I find myself doing this I do the following:
1) Introduce daily stop losses if I am unhappy with my play (today I am self banned after dropping 3 buyins).
2) Post/Review hands more. I particularly check for showdown hands to see if I am stacking off light
3) Tighten up a little. I have read High Limit posts who view this as a form of tilt, which it probably is in terms of generating wins at that level, but at our stakes I am less convinced.

Incidentally, I believe a 15 buyin downswing highlights my weakness as a player. I was a bit surprised to see posters who I respect like Berge had suffered similar spells. Do others have views on this.