How do you guys do it? Any tips?

I played a short session a couple of nights ago where I lost just under a buy in. Still feel disgusted about it - not the lost buy in, but the way I played and the fact I played.

I've never had the "sting" of a losing session hang around so long. There were a couple of hands I played poorly towards the end of my session that I just can't shake off. But mostly, I think I feel guilty about playing even though I went in feeling tired and the game wasn't particularly good (which I realised quickly).

I'm planning for a session tomorrow but I'm not looking forward to it nearly as much as usual. I generally love the weekend as I can really put in the hours, but at this stage I'm wondering if it's a good idea at all.

Check out the book The Mental Game of Poker.

Poorly played sessions happen to all of us, but there are ways to cause them to happen less often, and you wont be as disgusted with yourself if you take some control over that aspect of the game, and if you know you play your best at a pretty high clip.

Playing at a consistently high level is an aspect I personally struggle with and is the #1 thing I am working on about my game right now. Dicking around on my phone less is definitely a key aspect of it for me. I cant give much more advice than this as im at the beginning of my own journey about this.

If you can only afford one buy-in you should be playing a low dollar home game. Seriously. If losing just one buy in has you spinning like this the money means too much for you and you shouldn't be playing. I'm not saying that as an attack, but losing rent money, food money, any retirement savings, etc, is not good.

You also can't play well if one buy in means so much. It's scared money at that point.

I explicitly said the lost buy in wasn't the concern. I played my usual stakes (lower considering my usual game has a straddle) albeit not in my usual game.

Thanks for the book idea.

I've done similar to you in ditching my phone while playing. I'll only occasionally glance at it away from the table if I go to the toilet or for a stretch.

I think I'm feeling what a recovering alcoholic must feel when they have that first sip after an extended period of sobriety. I don't know.

A few months ago I decided I was never going to play tired or stick around in line ups that were tough for me. Balancing both of these when you've got a full time job isn't easy. In the past I'd try to squeeze in a session whenever I had the time, regardless of my condition or table toughness.

I usually feel a little better once I'm at the table and situated.

Write down some notes on everything, where your leaks are, hands where your opponents outplayed you, and other things you noticed in hands you might not have been involved in. Have a game plan for being in the same situation (maybe the plan is: leave the table)
After processing it this way, you might be able to move on to the next session.

Give ourselves some time to relax maybe? After two weeks you may feel like going there again.

Sessions can go one of four ways.

(1) You play well and win.
(2) You play well but lose.
(3) You play badly but win.
(4) You play badly and lose.

Sounds like you had a category 4 day. It happens to everyone.

Actually the ones I think people overlook are the category 3 days. Most of us can recognise the days where we make the correct plays and just get unlucky. The ones we try not to think about are the ones where we make shocking decisions but suck out, say "phew" and think nothing more of it.

Im lucky enough to have a big enough casino that i can just change table or stakes. Definitely would be frustrating if i took time off work and/or drove a long way to find that the 1 or 2 running tables are tough.

Nothing is more fun than playing badly and winning anyway. Best. Memories. Ever.

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OP, time heals all wounds.

Except amputations. Lost digits don't grow back.

Take some time away from the table. Use the time to think and learn. Leading up to your next session, start consciously thinking about how you want to play. Envision the scenarios. Get a good night's rest, eat healthy, and sit down mentally and physically ready to play your best.

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My late coach used to call these days "character building".

I once lost 3 300 dollar buy in's in a 1/2 game when I was first getting into poker and I was devasted by it (I had a room at the Trop in AC and I didn't even wanna stay so I hopped on a Greyhound at like 3am to go home) but it motivated me to get as good as I possibly can. These are the attitudes that make people great players.

This was definitely the case. I got a good sleep before today's session and was fortunate enough to get a pretty decent table. Played my best for the duration and booked a good win. No lingering issues from the other night.

Kudos for being honest with yourself about your play and mental state in regards to your last session.
Self awareness is huge.
Usually after a bad session, I try and think of where it went wrong? Did I play poorly? Did I run poorly? Both?
If you feel like you didn’t make any mistakes (or big mistakes), didn’t punt or make any terrible calls, then you shouldn’t feel too bad and you should be ready to crush your next session.
When I take a shitty beat or get sucked out on, I tell myself “I need to keep putting myself in this situation”. Over the long run, those 3:1, 4:1 situations will print for you.
Head up. Learn from any mistakes or blunders. Next hand.

Good luck out there!!

I remember once a couple of years ago I was in Vegas, a guy at my table just lost a big pot and he was obviously tilted. He jammed from early position in the next hand (100bb ish) and I gladly called with KK.

He tabled 47o and stood up preparing to leave but then Poker God gifted him two pairs to win and stay.

Sigh. He wanted to leave and he couldn't. I wanted to win and I couldn't.

That was a traumatising memory at the early stage when I started to play poker, and the wound would probably never heal because I don't play 47o to get the same fun back.

Little more than a year ago, I had a bad session, and I was stewing about it the next day. Thinking back on the hands I played, I honestly felt I played fine, but just ran bad, well below EV.

That's when it hit me - playing well but still losing is tilting as all get out; playing well and winning is fun, but it can be frustrating and feel like work when you're having to play well to win; playing bad and losing is still losing, but if you know you're playing badly and just don't give a f**k, it can still be fun to just splash around and gamble; but absolutely nothing is more fun than playing badly and winning anyway.

Not that anyone in their right mind would deliberately play badly because it's more fun. Of course we'll always try to play well, but playing well, win or lose, isn't always fun, and is often not all that fun, win or lose.