Hi guys,

I'm (again) rather new to the game and at the moment I cannot think about anythink else. I'm devouring anything about poker, I'm thinking about it every minute of the day and even go to sleep while watching video's.


I play every day and study in a 2:1 ratio, meaning I play e.g. two hours and study my hands for one hour.



While this all sounds ok on the surface, I'm running into some mental issues. First of all, I think I'm at the point where Poker is taking over my life. Somehow I like it, but on the other hand it affects me in an unhealthy way. Being tied to the computer for so long, not returning phone calls, not going to the gym on a regular basis, stuff like that.

On the other hand my losing sessions are always a problem because they are much longer than my winning sessions. I win 1-2 BI's 5 of 7 days playing about 1000k hands per session, but I lose 3-4 BI's playing 2k hands, when it's not going so well.

This is especially true when I face a new type of villain, a new table dynamic or a new type of strategy that absolutely dumspters me. Then I cannot get away from the table, I just want to figure it out and try again and again and again untill I have it....which costs me a lot sometimes.


I'm a winning player at my stakes so far, but I've also looked into gambling addiction stuff , because I want to know if it's possible that I suffer from it. However I think it's more of a general obsession with the game as it is with everything I do. I'm just Mr. 100%, no matter what I touch. Poker, computer games, sports, hell even cooking or fashion, I always tend to approach everything as a science.


Those are personal patterns that I have for my entire life and I want to change that. I like being on fire, but I want to tone it down a notch. Doesn't help being a shark when I have no friends and look like a ghost.


Any ideas on how to approach this?

Treat poker like a job. Give yourself a playing schedule like you're going to work and stop playing/studying when you've put in your hours. Then do other stuff and forget about poker until your next shift.

To keep yourself honest, set up a reward system. For example, give yourself points each day you follow the schedule and reward yourself with something when you accumulate enough points. Or turn it into a personal challenge. See how many days in a row you can abide by the schedule. When you trip up, start over again.

On a macro level be committed to living a balanced life by fully grounding that you are a human being with a variety of needs and only a limited amount of energy.

And prioritise a handful of things you can do each day that keep you sane. E.g. workout when you wake up. Meditate as well.