Avoiding a pair after a loss: when do you go back?

After a painful loss on a pair, traders often avoid it entirely — sometimes rationally (it doesn't suit them), sometimes as avoidance that narrows their options. The return, if it comes, needs its own process.

Avoiding a pair after a loss: when do you go back? — drawdown and recovery diagram
An equity curve during a drawdown and its recovery

What's your experience?

  • the pair you avoided and why
  • how the avoidance served or limited you
  • how you returned, if you did
Avoiding a pair after a loss: when do you go back? — risk-reward diagram
A risk-reward ratio of 1 to 2

The journal guide shows whether the avoidance was rational.

Background: How to keep a trading journal that actually improves your trading

A journal turns a pile of trades into evidence. What to record, the numbers worth calculating and a weekly review routine that takes less than an hour.

What should a trading journal include?

For each trade: the pair, direction, size, entry, stop, target, risk, the reason for the trade, how you felt, the result in money and in R, whether you followed your plan, and chart screenshots.

How do I calculate expectancy?

Multiply your win rate by your average win, then subtract your loss rate multiplied by your average loss. Measured in R, a positive result means the approach has made money per trade on average.

Read the full guide

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