[Lucere]

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though I have never done this before I feel like has been coming for a while.

A couple of months ago I felt for the first time I wasnt getting any buzz from winning.

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These two statements are concerning because although they might not necessarily suggest that you have a gambling problem, they do suggest that you might not be playing for the right reasons. In other words, instead of playing to better your game and/or playing to make some money while still monitoring a solid game, you're playing for some kind of rush or feeling. This is no different than smokers or drinkers who need more of a given substance over time to feel the same effects as they did when they first started. If that's what your poker playing has been reduced to -- feeling some kind of effect -- then you're not only playing for the wrong reasons, but those reasons can lead you to make bad behavioral choices (e.g., blowing your bankroll on blackjack), because you're essentially doing it for the rush and not thinking about it. If you want poker to remain a part of your life, then I think you need to figure out a way to maintain a steady, solid game without doing so for the need of a rush. If you can't do this, then I think poker needs to go, otherwise all your money might go.

Also, as a PhD student myself, being a grad student is one of the most stressful things a person can do, and I've seen grad school make otherwise level-headed people do crazy things on an impulse. If you've had a very stressful week or day because of school, that's also a time when you shouldn't play. Hope that helps.