Advice: How poker players cope with stress
Stress is one of the most significant problems today, as its levels are rising substantially and continue to show a rapid increase. Therefore, questions about how to cope with such a nuance are becoming more and more relevant.
Poker players are among those who can be badly harmed by stress. It is important to stay focused while playing, which means sitting with a cool head. A nervous or panicky state leads to losses, frustration and other negative results. Professional poker players therefore have their own set of techniques for dealing with stress.
The influence of gaming experience on stamina
Those who are born with an impressive mental capacity for endurance are less prone to acute reactions to a particular game move. However, most players do encounter such difficulties. Nevertheless, the situation may improve over time, as experience also plays an important role.
The more you play and experience stressful situations at the poker table, the lower your stress levels will be over time. Many years of experience, especially with high limit games, is a hardening factor. The bottom line is that you only get an overreaction in the most extreme cases.
The fact that in a large amount of playing time one learns all the combinations, counters, potential outcomes and other things that a beginner may react negatively to, plays a part in this matter.
Nerve training
If nature did not give you nerves of steel, you can make them so. The following are ways to achieve a stable psyche that minimizes stress:
- providing a nutritious diet that includes the right vitamins and minerals.
- Taking nutritional supplements when one cannot get them from real food.
- Working with and following the guidance of a therapist.
- Meditations.
- Classes of varying degrees of difficulty to enable distraction/switching around.
- Physical activities, hobbies, traditional recreation.
- Avoiding alcohol, drugs and psychoactive substances.
It also helps to cope with stress through social interaction. This may be with friends, family or partners. If this kind of communication only makes you more irritated, you should switch to animals. It has been proven that the purring of cats has a calming effect on humans.
A few tips from professional poker players
Every poker player has their own ways of coping with stress. Some have decided to share their little useful secrets. So one poker player found an outlet in sports. She recommends physical activity depending on your inner state. If you’re just upset, you can go to the gym, if you’re angry you put on boxing gloves and go punch a punching bag.
Another poker player told us how he deals with his nervous state during the game. He simply distracts himself from his surroundings and tries to find something to focus on. For example, you can look for objects of the same colour in the room or count their number.
