Having a problem

[timewontgivemetime]

I feel psychologically broken trading.I stare at my monitor, get scan of the market & charts & pretty much know (barring any major events), can say where a stock is going, touch or blow through or drop.

As soon as I place a trade no matter how big or small, something happens & I get impatient, flustered & eventually shaken out. And like magic, the underlying goes right to where I thought it was. I know I'm not special. But it's frustrating. So frustrating I'm falling into or maybe already in a deep depression.

Here is a disclaimer about me - I had $6k in my account & in 4 months turned it into $70k. I feel like the hour between wolf & dog was written about me - the traders behavior was exactly like mine but I lost it all & in very short order. I was crying like a baby everyday for a long time. I still to this day can't get past it. I might as well of had a tattoo of this event because it's with me & ingrained in my mind.

How do I get past this & turn it around? Every trade is soured. Typically the way to get over an old GF is to find a NEW gf.

What do you think? Am I over analyzing?, Crazy or going through something atypical of a home trader? UGHHHHHH!

 

[Cornix]

Stress tells you something is still wrong with your confidence. You should carefully analyze what's the possible cause of it: you don't trust your method or something else...

 

[barjon]

try resting orders

 

[Liquid validity]

Here is a disclaimer about me - I had $6k in my account & in 4 months turned it into $70k. I lost it all & in very short order.

That tells me one of 5 things (I'm taking a leap of faith and assuming its legit and live...).

1. Risk % per trade was too high and inevitably, a bad run wiped it all out
and you never had anything anyway.

2. Volatility increased / decreased and you did not react.

3. Markets you trade started ranging or vice versa if you originally targeted ranges.

4. Something else happened to make you start questioning your method
and close early - lack of thorough testing?

5. Martingaling, no stops, waiting until onside - inevitable failure.

Could be a combination of a few of them or something else entirely.

 

[deco101]

some advice

Well this works for me most of the time, so if I come up against a string of losses or even frustration the main thing that works for me is to constantly look for new trading ideas, if you are currently in losing position ( I Swing trade so a losing position takes a day or so to reveal itself) its a comfort that you have 2 or 3 more ideas in the pipeline which could erase your losses and make you more more money.

Even when your holding winners look for new ideas. Yes they could become losing trades but dont forget its all about an edge over a long series of trades not just the one 'big one'

Constantly keep coming up with ideas - much as the salesman is always cold calling looking for new leads - in bad or good months . Also enjoy the process of the analysis - the more analysis the better the odds of a winning trade (usually).


Deco

 

[malaguti]

Well this works for me most of the time, so if I come up against a string of losses or even frustration the main thing that works for me is to constantly look for new trading ideas, if you are currently in losing position ( I Swing trade so a losing position takes a day or so to reveal itself) its a comfort that you have 2 or 3 more ideas in the pipeline which could erase your losses and make you more more money.

Even when your holding winners look for new ideas. Yes they could become losing trades but dont forget its all about an edge over a long series of trades not just the one 'big one'

Constantly keep coming up with ideas - much as the salesman is always cold calling looking for new leads - in bad or good months . Also enjoy the process of the analysis - the more analysis the better the odds of a winning trade (usually).


Deco

odd, I disagree to an extent. There's nothing wrong with trying to refine an approach, thats a good thing. also a good idea is to have more than 1 strategy. But after a string of losses, then the more you move around and never give 1 strat any amount of time or conviction would only compound the problem.
thats my experience anyway.

 

[deco101]

odd, I disagree to an extent. There's nothing wrong with trying to refine an approach, thats a good thing. also a good idea is to have more than 1 strategy. But after a string of losses, then the more you move around and never give 1 strat any amount of time or conviction would only compound the problem.
thats my experience anyway.

I was not referring to a strategy as such - more like ideas in the sense of that may come from one strategy or several - there again Im very discretionary (no set system as such) in my approach...well the market is made up of individuals and different approaches... but I agree with you as far as taking a a break im on my 6th year trading and have taken several months out away from the markets on a number of occasions to heal the scars from some big losses - but vowed never to give up.

I now am consistenly profitable.

Its just good to have a pipeline of ideas ready to test the market with - of course better to have well thoughtout and researched ideas in the pipeling rather than just jumping back in - and re-enforcing in your mind that its about success over a series of trades rather than one or two...

witness people moaning about 2 losses from their football team, its about the season as a whole and where you end up in May.

May I suggest the Author of the thread read Trading in the Zone by Mark Douglas - excellent book and a standard text for any aspiring trader / speculator.

 

[malaguti]

Its just good to have a pipeline of ideas ready to test the market with

sorry mate, now i agree
ready to test..rather than try something new, that doesn't work after 4 or 5 and then try something else etc etc. which is akin to chasing something that will never come

 

[darktone]

So frustrating I'm falling into or maybe already in a deep depression.

Consider yourself lucky to be depressed, you have genuine reason to investigate CBT. Id recommend feeling good.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Feeling-Good-New-Mood-Therapy/dp/0380810336
When you have an understanding of CBT you be well placed to benefit from reading trading in the zone (pdf link in sig).
Its all in your head. This is your chance to find out more about yourself than you can now imagine. Trust me on that

 

[malaguti]

Consider yourself lucky to be depressed, you have genuine reason to investigate CBT. Id recommend feeling good.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Feeling-Good-New-Mood-Therapy/dp/0380810336
When you have an understanding of CBT you be well placed to benefit from reading trading in the zone (pdf link in sig).
Its all in your head. This is your chance to find out more about yourself than you can now imagine. Trust me on that

are you getting commission on sales of that book

 

[darktone]

are you getting commission on sales of that book

I wish.
In all seriousness, i know i bang on but im a believer. My life has changed for the better (understatement) since i became aware.

 

[deco101]

I wish.
In all seriousness, i know i bang on but im a believer. My life has changed for the better (understatement) since i became aware.

my well get this book - can't be a grumpy northern g*t all my life

Thanks Darktone

 

[darktone]

my well get this book - can't be a grumpy northern g*t all my life

Thanks Darktone

If you do, dont make the same mistake i did and think the tools in the book are for the 'other' people, put me on hold for me 3 months. Even though you might feel like a wally do em, it will begin to make sense soon after you start.
GL man

 

[LiquidGenius]

Either work on your mental capacity (will power, w/e you want to call it) to NOT get out of trades, or keep trading and keep losing. The latter will actually solve the problem too as it did for me. I use to always have this itch to trade, and would over manage most if not all my positions. If I entered before i went to sleep (London open) I would wake up multiple times during the night. I hated it and loved it at the same time. Eventually though, after losing so much and trading for so long, one day I just stopped. I just kind of got sick of it really. Sick of not being able to listen to myself.

I started macro mini trading. Opening up a bunch of positions with really small sizes with no stops. I could lose well over 800 pips in a position and it would be like 2-3% of my account. I stopped being so frantic about how much I was up or down because with so many positions and so many pips to be significant I stopped looking at it so much and questioning my analysis. I did this for about 4 months and when I returned to intraday trading I traded much much better (psychologically anyway, results are a different story =p )

 

[danga]

That tells me one of 5 things (I'm taking a leap of faith and assuming its legit and live...).

1. Risk % per trade was too high and inevitably, a bad run wiped it all out
and you never had anything anyway.

For such a large spike in the equity curve in such a short period, I would guess point 1 above to be true. JMO