How do I calm myself down? |
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Posted Wed Jul 14, 2004 2:50 pm GMT by BobbyT
Whenever I get a good hand, I guess my fight or flight kicks in, and I get really nervous. The blood vessell that goes up my neck starts pulsating and any of the players can see this.
Is there anything that you can think about or do in order to not stress out? or is this just something that I should try to cover up?
Thanks...
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Posted Wed Jul 14, 2004 3:25 pm GMT by als24
Only way to stop from being nervous is to get used to having a good hand. Experience is the only way I can think of.
Posted Wed Jul 14, 2004 3:37 pm GMT by ballbp
Yeah it just takes time to keep calm when you have a good hand and you're waiting on a call or fold. It reminds me of my first time in a casino. Like my third hand in I got pocket kings. I was in early position and bet out first. As usual in the low limit games, the whole table called. Another king came on the turn and I bet the max. Even I could see my hand shaking like a leaf. Most of the table folded and I even saw a few people grinning. I knew why and just shook my head trying not to laugh myself. I've managed to control it now but it just takes some time.
Posted Wed Jul 14, 2004 3:50 pm GMT by ERock@mm
Yeah I have the same problem, my face turns red everytime I was in a big pot didnt matter if i was bluffing or had nutz. . . The past year or so I learned to control it and turn it into an advantage. I found ways to turn my face when when i purposely show 98s or 8To to pretned that I was bluffing. . .So when I play nutz in a big pot people would think I was bluffing.
You have to recognize your own tells and learn how to use them for your own advantage. Its difficult to control but if you can it will help you in the long run. . .In fact my problem was sooo bad that I was known as Red at the Taj Mahal.
Posted Thu Jul 22, 2004 4:51 pm GMT by Dakijeza
If I have the nuts, I like to think a little about bad beats. It calls me down.
Posted Tue Aug 03, 2004 10:33 am GMT by TheDTrain-TheReckoning
same with me the first months i started playing. trying learning some chip tricks, it's relaxing and takes ur mind off things. even simple chip shuffling helps.
Posted Tue Aug 03, 2004 10:46 am GMT by Nut Flush
| Quote: | | The blood vessell that goes up my neck starts pulsating and any of the players can see this. |
Wear a turtle neck :D
Seriously though, just like others have said it takes practice. And having a tell isn't really a bad thing if you can use it to bluff too. Try to get all worked up when you have a crap hand and when they all fold from your "tell" make sure you flip em over to show everybody(disclaimer: I don't condone bluffing in low limit :D )
Posted Wed Aug 04, 2004 2:43 pm GMT by Oldgzer
I like to think to myself "God damned 7 2 off suit!! I should've never played this hand in the first place!!" That usually helps calm me down. And since I still haven't beaten Ninja Gaiden on Xbox, I'll start thinking about the game and how $@!!* hard it is!!
Posted Wed Aug 04, 2004 2:52 pm GMT by Ninja
Ninja Gaiden is extremely hard. It's a fantastic game though...I can't get past the 11th chapter.
Posted Wed Aug 04, 2004 6:27 pm GMT by Pocket Jacks
Well, if thats the ONLY problem you have you could wear something with a collar. I have the beginner problem, I have my hands start to shake when I hit a really big hand. Its something I have been working on but still can't get it to be normal.
Posted Fri Aug 06, 2004 6:12 pm GMT by JunkyardGod
how about some Xanax?
Posted Fri Aug 20, 2004 8:20 pm GMT by Jonniedough
| JunkyardGod wrote: | | how about some Xanax? |
thats what I was thinking.....valium works too 
Posted Tue Aug 24, 2004 7:32 pm GMT by joerobinson04
Play a lot of online poker. It helps with bluffing and not having a tell. You don't really have any emotion when you're at home by yourself playing online then when you go to play in real life you do the same.
Posted Wed Sep 15, 2004 12:59 pm GMT by dealerbuttons.com
| Quote: | Oldgzer Posted: Wed Aug 04, 2004 2:43 pm Post subject:
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I like to think to myself "God damned 7 2 off suit!! I should've never played this hand in the first place!!" That usually helps calm me down. And since I still haven't beaten Ninja Gaiden on Xbox, I'll start thinking about the game and how $@!!* hard it is!!
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I agree with oldgzer, but I don't throw a fuss, like I'm mad at the cards, then come in and call any bet. Anyone can see that you got power cards after a show like that.
Right when I see AA, i convince myself immediately its a 27 that might have a chance. That just keeps me from changing colors and gulping.
Posted Wed Sep 15, 2004 1:06 pm GMT by redd38
There's a guy that plays with us that has to drink beer when he plays otherwise his face turns red when he bluffs. But when he's drinking his face is always red.
He usually loses all his money after a while 
Posted Wed Sep 15, 2004 9:34 pm GMT by cayouche
| redd38 wrote: | There's a guy that plays with us that has to drink beer when he plays otherwise his face turns red when he bluffs. But when he's drinking his face is always red.
He usually loses all his money after a while |
LOL I guess poker is not his game then...
Posted Thu Sep 16, 2004 2:53 pm GMT by BeerWench13
| Quote: | redd38 wrote:
There's a guy that plays with us that has to drink beer when he plays otherwise his face turns red when he bluffs. But when he's drinking his face is always red.
He usually loses all his money after a while
LOL I guess poker is not his game then... |
I was thinking that maybe he just can't hold his beer .
I usually have at least two beers while playing. It helps to calm me because as soon as I sit down at the table my hands are shaking. I get a rush just from the anticipation of playing so my first 5 or 6 hands I'm trembling like a virgin on her wedding night. After I get the first beer down I start to relax and then I can play without the shakes until I get my first big win. Then, after I've won the hand, I'm back to the leaf in the wind for the next couple of hands. Anyone else get the ringing in their ears after they just took down a huge pot?
Also, when I'm playing with people that aren't in my usual game and that I'm not as friendly with, I usually listen to classical music on headphones. This helps to keep my blood pressure down while I'm playing. It doesn't seem to work on the rush after the win though.
Posted Tue Oct 05, 2004 8:03 am GMT by bigddyburn
When my hands use to shake i got them to stop by leaving atleast one finger on the felt, worked for a few friends of mine.
Posted Tue Oct 05, 2004 12:34 pm GMT by Always_Bored
| als24 wrote: | | Only way to stop from being nervous is to get used to having a good hand. Experience is the only way I can think of. |
thats exactly the right way to calm yourself down. Experience. When i first started playing I got very shaky when I had a good hand. Now after playing thousands of hours of poker I am easily calm for all hands. Unless i want to look excited to throw people off.
Posted Tue Oct 05, 2004 7:56 pm GMT by Cyberhwk
I have no problem concealing my good hands. I just fumble around every time I take down a pot. The nervous rush is a cool feeling, but unfortunatly it leaves me as coordinated as a newborn deer.
Posted Wed Oct 06, 2004 8:50 am GMT by BeerWench13
| Quote: | | I just fumble around every time I take down a pot. The nervous rush is a cool feeling, but unfortunatly it leaves me as coordinated as a newborn deer. |
Ditto. I have no problem remaining calm during the hand, but once I've taken down the pot I'm fumbling for the next few hands because I can't control the rush. I guess I'm like my mom. She never panicked in any situation until after it was all over. Then she'd pass out. 
Posted Fri Nov 05, 2004 6:37 pm GMT by BigSlugger09
First time I ever played, it was for a small buy-in, and I didnt think it was anything big. That was until I got my first good hand. I was trying to count out the chips to bet, and my hands were shaking all over the place. I remember thinking to myself..."why am I so damn nervous its 5 freakin bucks" It was pretty embarrassing. And that was my first bet higher than like 50 cents!! You can just imagine my first all-in.
As I played more and more the nerves settled, and the shaking stopped (THANK GOD).
Still get really nervous after I go all-in. I just pray that I dont get a bad beat. I have to stand up and walk around after I go all in!!!!!!
Posted Mon Nov 08, 2004 8:24 am GMT by BeerWench13
| Quote: | | Still get really nervous after I go all-in. I just pray that I dont get a bad beat. I have to stand up and walk around after I go all in!!!!!! |
I usually stand up and walk away if I get more than one caller. Last night I had pocket kings and had about $5 left. I went all-in and got two callers. From there I got up and walked away because I knew a bad beat was coming (I was right.) If it's just heads up though, I normally just sit and see what the race will bring.
Posted Wed Nov 10, 2004 11:02 am GMT by JBenjPoker
one way i found to stay calm is...look at your cards one at a time, and make a mental note of what each card is like saying in your head, "Ah, As", I do this as the dealer is giving my cards...try to be quick about it, so people dont notice...then when it comes around to your turn, and everyone is staring you down....cover your cards with the right hand....put your left hand on top like your going to lift... then simply, lift your left hand, BUT LEAVE YOUR CARDS FACE DOWN, AND JUST LOOK AT THE PALM OF YOUR LEFT HAND!!!! this has helped me to give opponents a BLANK READ!  i hope this helps...
Posted Wed Nov 10, 2004 11:37 am GMT by Sherrif Lobo
| ERock@mm wrote: | | Yeah I have the same problem, my face turns red everytime I was in a big pot didnt matter if i was bluffing or had nutz. . . |
Thats why I wear a red hat
Posted Wed Nov 10, 2004 11:59 am GMT by BeerWench13
I'd love to play with you guys. I have a delayed reaction to everything. You wouldn't know I was holding the nuts until after I took the pot. Sometimes it's great to be a woman.
Posted Fri Dec 31, 2004 12:45 pm GMT by jam88
Ask your doc for a beta blocker. It will do wonders for your game if you are a nervous/anxious person. Needed them for presentations, just couldn't control my nerves. Calms you right down without side effects.
Posted Fri Dec 31, 2004 12:55 pm GMT by h3llo7
Smoke a J?
Posted Sat Jan 22, 2005 10:15 am GMT by circlencircle
I am somewhat new to the game an the more I play online I find that I am able to stay calm, if for no other reason because in the large volume of hands played I’ve had more bad beats so I'm less likely to feel I’ve got a hand locked up, because without the nuts anything is possible. Anyway, when I started playing a while back all the guys I was with were/are quite good and so I was intimidated straight of the bat, plus I think they are in a better position to loose money than I am, which makes any given hand more significant for me. I am quite emotional internally so weather I have a strong hand going for the check-raise or have jack-sh%^ I get unstable and will do many things to indicate that something is going on, shaky hands, red face, tence posture, rediculous smile and eyebrow raise. Because this happens equally in both, strong hand and weak hand situations, no one ever really knows why. In my situation its better to just go with it than to fight it because when I do...when I cover it up, THAT is when the true tell comes out.
Posted Wed Jan 26, 2005 10:05 pm GMT by Bleakill
well, i played a handful of live games and i noticed something about myself...when i play poker, my face turns red period. no matter what i'm holding...so you can't really pick a tell on that.., i noticed i'm not shaking when get a monster hand but still try to calm mysef down with a "72o" chant ))) ...also, i try to mask the tells by acting the same every time no matter what i'm holding...it helps. For some strange reason, i noticed, my left eyebrow is always a bit raised, outside the table, too....who knows maybe that gives them a wrong tell...ya and i'm of pretty bulky complection  but good thing about that is that i dont worry about my face expression changing or vessels pulsing strange thing thou, i'm absolutely unable to pick up ANY tells whatsoever on my opponents, i mean, i know common tells and they just dont seem to work on them, the only thing i got is their face expressions (questionable) and acts (even more questionable, how to tell if he's not bluffing)...good thing is being a flegmatic and not getting too excited about anything 8)
Posted Mon Jan 31, 2005 6:42 pm GMT by KINGJACK
As most poeple said, only experience can get a rid of it completely.
A couple of bad beat can help too... 
But what i like to do nomather if I have the nutt or I'm on a stone bluff, is to take a couple of seconds to visualise the exact move and tone of voice i'll use to bet call or raise. and then think to something else for another couple of sec.
Super Bowl, your girl friend, your next vacation... anything.
And then you moove!
Of course you have to do it in all situation, if not everybody will notice that you do it only what you have the nutt.
Posted Tue Apr 05, 2005 10:22 pm GMT by deadmoney28
lol ive never thought of doing that.. i should try saying it in my head b4 i do it.. anyways experience does it in my mind
Posted Tue Apr 12, 2005 10:09 pm GMT by opMickey
man, i've read about half of this thread and ill tell ya, i've never heard of so many people with shakey hands lol.. ive only been playing a couple weeks, and ive only seen a few people play, and ive only been in 1 game for money which was a $5 buy in... but man, i haven't seen anyone with litterally "shaking" hands.. im not sure if you guys ment it literally but dang, i just think of a movie with some badass serious gangster and think about how he looks when hes about to kill a guy EVERY time i get my cards... ive only played a few times and already i think i've got my tells covered up
Take it easy,
Posted Wed Apr 13, 2005 6:58 am GMT by BeerWench13
| Quote: | | ive only been playing a couple weeks, and ive only seen a few people play, and ive only been in 1 game for money which was a $5 buy in... but man, i haven't seen anyone with litterally "shaking" hands |
Ah, young blood. Just wait. You'll see what we're all experiencing. Nothing's quite like the rush of winning that $500-$600 pot or having someone push their stack at you when you're holding the stone cold nuts. Once you play more you'll understand. Copy your statement and keep it. You'll laugh later.
Posted Wed Apr 13, 2005 9:56 am GMT by arras
Exactly, that rush and subsequent shake control is what I love about poker.
Posted Wed Apr 13, 2005 5:18 pm GMT by age_of_sages
Hell, I get shaky hands once I get deep into a MTT, glad it's all online
Posted Thu Apr 14, 2005 7:25 am GMT by BeerWench13
I get shaky as soon as I get my chips in front of me. I usually don't play the first few hands because I've got such a rush just from knowing that I'm playing that I'm shaken for the first few hands. This is not an issue online, but in live play it can be a false tell that can cost. I've had it happen a few times, however, once a player said that my hands were shaking so badly he just knew I had a monster and he folded to my minimum bet on the flop. I guess it has its pros and cons.
Posted Thu Apr 14, 2005 9:51 am GMT by Soup_dog
I have the same problem. It's so rare that I get to play a live game that I am usually physically sick to my stomach before hand. I love it!
Posted Thu May 19, 2005 2:19 pm GMT by Imajica1975
my cheeks get red after I've had a beer or two.
I don't know how much money this involuntary bodily response has actually won me because people always think I'm bluffing... but its a lot, I'll bet.
Posted Sat Jun 11, 2005 2:12 pm GMT by titans4ever
Experience and routine.
I do the same thing every hand. I wait until my turn to peek (want to just watch everyone else peek ). I look at my cards and metally picture my cards in my head. Only then will I put my marker on top of them and make a move. By remembering my cards including suits, I don't look at them the rest of the hand, which in itself can be a tell.
I practiced this over and over and it is such a routine now I don't think about it and allows me time to absorb the rockets I just got dealt before I make a call/raise etc.
Another thing I like to do I got from "Jesus" Ferguson. He says he will just mimic someone at the table. If they are playing with their chips, he will, if they put their hand on their chin, he does. Get you laughing inside wondering when they will notice.
Posted Wed Jun 29, 2005 8:05 am GMT by Silhouette
If you're in a place that doesn't mind smoking, you can buy non-addictive tobacco, like American Spirit or Djarum Cloves.
Having something else to keep my mind on has helped me, and all the guys I play with at Uni now smoke cloves as well..
Can't say this is the Surgeon General's suggested method of stopping from shaking, but .. hey, ya know
Posted Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:07 pm GMT by Odin
First of all, who said American spirits were non addictive tobacco? I haven't heard this ever before lol please say it's true.
Secondly my hands always shake when I'm in an intense situation. Whether I have a monster bluff, or a great hand, or an ok/decent hand where lots of money is involved, I'll shake.
I put my hands on the table and take controlled breaths: very similar to how I've been breathing.
I also will count from 1-10-1 while waiting.
Posted Wed Jul 06, 2005 5:36 pm GMT by [psyonix]
| JBenjPoker wrote: | | one way i found to stay calm is...look at your cards one at a time, and make a mental note of what each card is like saying in your head, "Ah, As", I do this as the dealer is giving my cards...try to be quick about it, so people dont notice...then when it comes around to your turn, and everyone is staring you down....cover your cards with the right hand....put your left hand on top like your going to lift... then simply, lift your left hand, BUT LEAVE YOUR CARDS FACE DOWN, AND JUST LOOK AT THE PALM OF YOUR LEFT HAND!!!! this has helped me to give opponents a BLANK READ! i hope this helps... |
Genius! I mean, I do the same as the cards are dealt, but never have I thought to just look at my palm after!
Posted Mon Aug 08, 2005 4:12 pm GMT by Nathan_S
Sorry to bring a dead thread back, just reading stuff while bored at work. American Spirits have no additives. They are still tobacco so they still have nicotine and the addictive properties. Cloves are non addictive though. Just making sure someone doesn't start smoking American Spirits thinking they won't get addicted.
Posted Thu Aug 11, 2005 4:55 am GMT by AceyEm
Remember, poker is a mind game as much as it is a card game. The cards you have are not the important thing. The important thing is what cards your opponent thinks you have. To cover up tells you can develop a ritual for each hand, for example:
Peek at your cards, put your marker on the cards, pick up a stack of chips and riffle them a bit to make the clicking sound. Put the chips back in your stack, go clockwise around the table and look at everyone else's face. Then if you're going to fold toss in the cards, if your going to bet toss in the chips. This will make it more difficult to get a read on you preflop due to the same ritual for every hand.
durning the rest of the hand you can distract yourself by fiddling with the ice cubes in your dirnk, relighting your cigar, playing with a small stack of chips etc. Acting like your mind is elsewhere or you're distracted on every hand makes getting that read off you more difficult. I have a Rubics cube I play with while the others are contemplating their bets. I just keep twisting the sides of the cube with my head down. In reality I'm peeking over the top of my glasses and watching how the other players behave and picking up on their tells.
Of course anything would work, fiddle with volume of your ipod/walkman if you're listening to music. play in the ashtray if you're smoking, stir the ice cubes in your drink etc. The key is to do this distracting act on every hand. The same routine regardless of the value of your hand. Also keep up the routine after you've folded the hand.
I play a lot of face to face poker now in pubs where there are plenty of distractions anyway thus making the distracted player routine a lot easier.
With practice comes experience and with the experience the tells become easier to cover up. Another thing you can do is have a friend observe your play and advise you after the game on what tells he or she picked up. Then you can either add them to the routine or remove them from your behavior.
Consistancy is the best cover for tells. If you're doing the same thing every hand it's a lot harder to get any kind of a read on you.
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