From what I can tell about your strategies, I can see how the last 4 months weren't very profitable. The market cadence changed after the election.
Period Update 4/01/2017 - 7/01/2017 ---------- Slow and steady work on my recovery effort. First month of the quarter was great, followed by small losses the last couple of months. Still operating with extreme caution, and adhering to permissible trades. The number of trades done is reduced as a result. Each time I miss a 'great trade' I keep trying to figure out how to determine rules that would allow such a trade in future without opening the flood gates to discretionary trades. That is an ongoing work that I keep figuring out and programming. Code: For 2017 Starting Balance: 123,137 Start Date End Date P/L Withrawal Closing Balance 2017-01-01 2017-02-04 -20950 -6500 95,687 2017-02-04 2017-03-04 12058 -3000 104,745 2017-03-04 2017-04-01 7159 0 111,904 2017-04-01 2017-05-06 14812 -2500 124,216 2017-05-06 2017-06-03 -1994 0 122,222 2017-06-03 2017-07-01 -823 -2500 118,899 Next update will be in 3 months.
You're not alone. Many do this, although most cannot admit it, and end up blowing out their accounts. It's a learning process. Pat yourself on the back for recognizing it before complete blowup. Slow and steady wins the race. Speaking from personal experience, I tried the rabbit approach and now back in corporate America because of it. Luckily I don't need to trade to live so the pressure is off to sprint.
The problem is not discretionary trading. The problem is cognitive and a lack of skill to psychologically detach oneself from a trade. Traders that fail at discretionary trading fail because of the above. Discretionary trading is much more powerful that mechanical trading. Its ability to adapt on the fly and see what math models cannot see is a very strong point for becoming a good discretionary trader. Even the best mechanical system will work for a bit then fail. Discretionary trading keeps hammering along adapting on the fly. But the ability to detach oneself from the trade, and the money, and trade the process focusing only on the moment, is a very hard thing to learn. And a hard skill to develop.
Bingo. Takes years and drawdowns for most to develop. It's not easy but once you do, the account grows steadily with spurts here and there. However, always need to keep your guard up.