I'm in my 11th year and one of my biggest problems is being physically and mentally drained all the time. Good days, bad days, I get exhausted from the emotional rollercoasters and constant effort to focus and work hard. Even when I'm doing very well, it's always taken a toll. This month I've done something I've never done before. I haven't looked at my account (equity) once. I figure I've had an ok month, which probably makes it a little easier, and the result has been MUCH more energy and ability to focus on and do things outside trading hours. I honestly haven't felt this refreshed for a long, long time.
Stress ( See page 78 of 11APR09 Economist) it has been posted. Here is the Bohr Effect in trader terms. The O 2 levels in the brain drop to 50% of capacity. CO 2 is WAY UP. And you need to considr balancing five things: Stress reduction diet exercise meditation and social support
gonna sound wierd, but here goes. when i was a kid, i thought about what it would be like on your death bed. thinking about dying, and what happens to you after, made me anxious. all that anxiety kinda turned into, "i gotta get up and doing something right now" I've been stuck in a rut before, like coming home from trading, thinking about going to the gym but not doing it, maybe eating some doritos and calling it a night...or taking a nap. what got me out of that rut was thinking, "this is kind of a waste" which then got me thinking, "man, what if i got mrked tmmrw...hm.." which of course made me anxious about the life i was living, and then i got up immediately and just started doing something, like running, or getting smashed with friends. (obviously i view exercise and social activities as positives vs. vegging out alone) obviously this isn't a plan/advice, its just what i did and i'm sure anybody that trades for a living knows this malaise, especially if you went from backed to self backed
I use this: http://www.emwave.com/ Great tool... if you can train yourself to stay in the green during your trade, you're doing fine. Golf pros use it for the same reason. Of course, you need to learn to see how the market moves first Much of the stress you experience comes from putting your money on the line while not being able to read strength. Hope this helps.
I think the link to emwave pc coherence and trading is as you say. First you must learn to learn how the market works. By understanding your mind and its function outside of trading, you can see what coherence is. Meditation is a classic example to find coherence within your self. A person can almost guess the coherence level of a poster or the Bohr Effect ) 2 brain depravation. By calibrating yourself outside of the market, you can see when you are falling into the stress traps tested by the Rutgers team as mentioned in the Economist. Once stress causes analysis or intuition disruptions, no matter what, the mind is not going to be able to serve the trader. as shown in the stress disruption testing the wrong decision and subsequent actions are taken as the probability distributions show.
wow that is me. I havent had any losses to cause stress but just my overall life has been so stressful. 2 jobs, somewhat new to trading, pay off large amounts of debt from an investment gone wrong. having my current living expenses etc.
I agree. Eating clean Exercising 4x/week Meditation/deep breathing Positive input (if you can't control it, don't let it control you. I know, easier said than done, as I get the tired, wiped out mentally/physically stuff too.) Last, have your blood drawn, and have a metabolic panel done, as well as a hormone panel. If you're running on a "low tank" in Testosterone, that will do it every time! After we reach our 30's, our Testosterone levels decline. The amount of the decline depends on the person. If you're low, being tired all the time is just one symptom.
Jack, What would you recommend for a guy who can't breath through his nose? I've done some research into deep breathing, practiced it myself and saw huge benefits (when it worked!). Relaxation, attitude, mood, focus, confidence - all dramatic improvements. The thing is, I've got chronic rhinitis (sinus constantly blocked/mouth-breather). No detectable allergies etc. Seems the only option is surgery - turbinate reduction. But there's a complication of having 'too much' tissue removed and Empty Nose Syndrome. Anyway, your diagram was quite insightful. The medical community and broader population is hugely ignorant to the profound impact deep, FULL breathing has on human physiology and psychology. The few times it worked for me, the result was nothing short of great. Btw, most of the symptoms in the sidebar apply to me - tired after sleep, frequent urination, no energy - except the losses
I'm getting a blood panel done next week. Herbs/supplements that boost testosterone work great, for most. I ran an OTC-cycle of Diesel Test Hardcore (mix of tongkat ali, maca, horny goat weed, avena sativa etc). BIG difference in libido, confidence, well-being and energy. Definitely works. I'm 31, btw.