The Dark Side of Suppressing Emotions While Trading

[AnonymousT2011]

Hi all. I've been trading for 10 years now. I was doing some online research and found this article about a kid that describes losing his emotions by suppressing them:

i am an 18 year old guy in university, i live a pretty average life, have normal loving parents, but i feel like im in a trap, i feel like im meant for something bigger

anyways all my life i have been really emotional, i would get nervous, scared, happy, sad, etc. at the smallest things that you would never make a big deal about


i saw my emotions as a huge weakness and i sought to take them away, the main one was fear, i was afraid of everything

so about 1 - 1 1/2 years ago i found this natural cures book that outlines a tapping technique that you do on yourself to make you not crave food, (btw I should add i was about 50 pounds over weight at this time and completely down on myself) anyways i did the tapping technique and it had an unforeseen effect on me i never expected. (btw i have now lost 40 pounds and am looking better than ever)

i couldnt become afraid, at all. i was so afraid of heights that stepping on a stool would make my heart start to beat, and here i was standing on a table and my heart wasnt reacting like normal, it was calm. Now i only used this technique about 6 -8 times in my life, but some how my body learned to suppress my fear on its own.

but ive noticed that over the span of a year which was the last time i did the technique, i have become extremely good at supressing my fear to the point that i have been suppressing my other emotions as well, and i only noticed this now

for example i was recently in an extremely embarrassing situation, and i noticed that my embarrassment inside me was only half as strong, it felt artificial like it was missing a huge part of it

another thing is i noticed that i havent been truly happy since i started suppressing, i mean i laugh and joke around, but i havent had that intense feeling of being happy

another example is that i recently went to a dance, normally with girls i get very nervous and something like touching their hand gets me going over the top with excitement and fervor

so i was grinding with this girl and feelin her up and stuff and i felt my body react but my mind acted as if it didnt care, it almost didnt feel real to me

all my emotions have been half as intense as before and lacking in fullness, and declining

now that i noticed it ive noticed them getting more suppressed everyday

i mean that is good for me but are there some unforeseen consequences im missing, i told this to a friend and he says im going through depression, but im not depressed

its gotten to the point were i really dont care about anyone, i wouldnt care if a person died in front of me and i dint try to help them, my morals are all gone (which i like and am fine with)

anyone have any ideas?

When I read this, I became shocked at how much I could relate to this kid. When I started trading I had all the bad emotions like greed, euphoria , fear, and panic like everyone else. And like everyone else it cost me a lot of money. Over time I've looked for way that I could try to keep them under control. But somehow instead of control I found a way to "destroy" them instead. Now while trading I don't feel those emotions anymore; at least not as intense. And I'm fine with that while trading....

But, like him it also affected my other positive emotion. I can't feel things like love, happiness, or even an emotional connection with other people. It's like I somehow turned myself into a fvcking sociopath. Not having emotions helped a lot while trading but has destroyed my social life. I'm in my late twenties and want to get married someday, but being as how I am I can't feel anything for the girls I'm been with except for lust.

I guess I though I'd write this to show the how dark the Dark Side of Trading can be. And want to see if there's any other traders that can relate to this. Thanks.

 

[hippie]

The trick is not so much suppressing the emotions, but acknowledge your emotions and manage your actions accordingly.

 

[nutmeg]

Now that you've squashed your emotions like a bug...stay tuned for physical disorders.

Control your emotions with rational and intellectual thoughts.

 

[Rearden Metal]

I'd attribute at least some of this loss of intensity to simple aging. As we all grow older, things tend to seem less and less important. This happens to pretty much everyone.

 

[Redneck]

Everything these three gentlemen above me said

I would add learn to compartmentalize/ redirect your emotions to other pursuits

Work is Work…. Weekends, Hobbies, and Vacations – are for Play


RN

 

[Quark]

Original info about the tapping technique the kid was referring to can be found at www.emofree.com. There's a link to an updated site there.

I've never heard of anyone having the effect he experienced. By overcoming the one issue, it sounds like he uncovered others.

 

[hippie]

Quote from Quark:

Original info about the tapping technique the kid was referring to can be found at www.emofree.com. There's a link to an updated site there.

I've never heard of anyone having the effect he experienced. By overcoming the one issue, it sounds like he uncovered others.

Search for Tapping Technique you get a lot of free demos on Youtube. The technique may well be a hype. It may work due to placebo effect in some cases.

 

[olias]

Quote from AnonymousT2011:




When I read this, I became shocked at how much I could relate to this kid.

Interesting, but this sounds serious my friend. You only live once and I'd for you to enjoy your time here. See a professional or read up on some self-help, but don't accept that this is how it should be. I think it's crucial to be able to connect with people if you're going to be happy. In all the infinity of time and all the infinity of space there has only been, and will only be one of you. And you have special gifts to give the world. I don't think you can share them if you can't connect. Good luck

 

[Eight]

I want my emotional health a lot more than trading gains. I've never bought into the "jump in, learn to swim, don't let your emotions run your trading" mentality, it seems stupid to me. I've spent years developing my edges and now I just relax and trade them, I know the outcome, at least averaged over a few trades, there is not that much to get excited about...

I also have done the tapping thingy, it's a form of acupressure and it's been disproven in real tests too... I'm guessing that the quoted article is complete bullshit, maybe intended to convince people of the awesome power of the tapping thingy... I met the guy that started the whole tapping thing at a book signing actually, he's one rude little bastard with a lot of newagey demonic people hanging on his every word...

 

[olias]

Quote from Eight:

I want my emotional health a lot more than trading gains. I've never bought into the "jump in, learn to swim, don't let your emotions run your trading" mentality, it seems stupid to me. I've spent years developing my edges and now I just relax and trade them, I know the outcome, at least averaged over a few trades, there is not that much to get excited about...

I also have done the tapping thingy, it's a form of acupressure and it's been disproven in real tests too... I'm guessing that the quoted article is complete bullshit, maybe intended to convince people of the awesome power of the tapping thingy... I met the guy that started the whole tapping thing at a book signing actually, he's one rude little bastard with a lot of newagey demonic people hanging on his every word...

Yeah the original story sounded like bullshit to me too. Or he's just a really, really special case.