Re: I can’t stop playing poker
Forgive the bluntness, but you probably shouldn't be gambling at all.
Playing microstakes poker should be a small/recreational thing. If its screwing up a relationship, it is NOT worth it.
Maybe try setting a specific 'personal' time which can be used for playing cards. Saturday mornings or whatnot. I'm not sure from your post if this will work. I think a couple weeks totally away from the game at a minimum would be better.
And now the constructive part:
Don't move up in stakes unless you want to go broke. All that will change is that the better players will be better and the donks will still be the same. You won't be able to move up anywhere near far enough to get away from that class of player.
As for emotional issues, you can't be concerned with winning and losing. Your goal at poker is not to make money, it is to make good decisions that are long-run profitable. Make that your goal while playing, and let the money take care of itself...if you really are a good/winning player, it will come.
Mental discipline is a huge part of this game. It is very simple to teach someone a near-optimal strategy for this game. It is much harder to deal with the swings involved in the game.
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