Help!!! I'm way off my game...

I'm playing way off my game and I'm not able to pull things back together. I've squandered 1/4 of my small original bankroll after building it up by 1/4 a few weeks ago. Part of it is some natural variance and bad beats, but thats not the real issue and I'm not here to bitch about my two pair getting busted by a straight on the river, because if i was playing my 'A' game I know i'd make it back by playing smart. However I'm off my game and catching cold cards/bad beats all at the same time. It's not a good combo.

As a poker player, you know when your 'on'. Your reads are good, your focus is solid. After a few orbits you have enough of a handle on things where you can make the correct decision without a ton of effort. Right now I'm way off, focus seems bad, reads are way way off... I'm still a novice player, but i'm not a fish but I feel like i'm playing like a total fish. I feel like i'm shooting in the dark... I take a longer time than usual to make decisions on hands, calculating odds, trying to remember what my opponent did the previous two times he was in this situation, and then still come to the wrong conclusion. Normally after I get some good reads, I'm able to make sound decisions quicker without struggling. My whole game right now seems to be one big struggle.

What do people do when they feel off? Should I step away for a few days to refocus myself? I'm so frustrated that I think it'll just compound the issue.

DEFINITELY take a break. Go re-read a poker book if you feel that you want to stay involved in the game without continuing to lose money. Maybe go and read about variance so you know it's just not you it happens to. The main thing to remember is that you should not play another hand until you are confident you've got over the bad spell, otherwise you'll be playing on tilt which will take you down even further.

I expect somebody else will come along and re-word this much more nicely and add some other hints to it. But even just one day off the game might be all you need to get away from any tilt.

First of all, reassure us you've read the Newbie Circle of Death sticky on this forum - it'll seem terribly familiar.

Then remember what made you a decent player - if you have Poker Tracker (and you sohuld have, really), check your hand histories as it's a lot easier to look on them disinterestedly after the event, and compare them to similar plays made when you were playing well.

It might be that the biggest hole here is in your confidenc,e rather than your play - if you've only lost a quarter of your bankroll (which, if I rememebr rightly, is not a big bankroll) then it really may just be natural variance.

If you know how to play solid poker that should win for you but you're still losing, don't try playing radically differently in the hope that you'll find a method that wins back the missing cash, because you probably will get in even more trouble and end up even further from playing your A game.

If you genuinely are playing worse, then you have to treat it as an opportunity to learn from your mistakes. If you don't have PT, then have a look at the hand histories individually after you play a key hand, even save them somewhere to view afterwards if that'll help. Because if all of a sudden you find you're playing KJo in early position through desperation to hit a decent flop, you'll be able t0 fix that particular hole and your game will get a little bit stronger as a result.

Thanks for the support guys.

I have read the 'newbie circle of death' but i will certainly re-read it.

I unfortunately do not have poker tracker because I'm a mac user (great for graphic design, not so great for poker).

Some of it is some natural variance, but some of it is not. I'm struggling with decisions, making poor choices, misreading situations. Just way way off last couple weeks.

I guess doing some reading is the best course, then. Use the tutorial sections of this site and others, read all the stickies on the relevant boards, read the bad beats thread for a bit of a laugh and reassurance that it doesn't just happen to you (actually, for one of the most horrible beats I've seen lately, read the "when it all goes wrong" thread on this board and look out specially for the hand where the villain goes all-in with a gutshot straight and nails it - one of the worst poker moves I've ever seen).

The most encouraging thing in this thread is your attitude, your humility, and your willingness to learn. You'll be fine.

'newbie circle of death' is one of the greatest posts ever. I just re-read it and feel a little better already. Not ready to tackle the tables again yet, but definitely better.