First: Stop the Bleed

The worst losses often come **after** a losing streak due to revenge trades and oversizing. Your objective is capital preservation and clarity. Start with a 3-day cooldown (no trades), a written debrief, and a return plan.

Equity curve with drawdown zones, highlighting the danger of revenge trading.

The 4-Box Debrief

• Market Regime: Trending, choppy, or news-driven? Was your system aligned?
• Execution: Did you follow entries, stops, and size rules?
• Edge Validity: Is the strategy underperforming or just in variance?
• Process Gaps: Journal, pre-trade checklist, and review cadence.

Rebuild in Stages

• Stage 1 — Sim mode: 10 trades by the book with >80% rule adherence.
• Stage 2 — Micro size: Real capital at 25–50% of usual size.
• Stage 3 — Normalization: Gradual scale up after 20 trades with adherence ≥85%.

Daily Routine During Recovery

• 15-minute market review with no trades allowed at open.
• One valid setup per session only; pass if unclear.
• End-of-day debrief: annotate charts, tag errors, propose one fix.

Your goal is not to win back fast; it’s to stop losing wrong.

Risk Controls That Matter

• Daily loss cap at −2R; platform lockout afterward.
• Max 3 trades/day; trade-count cap reduces tilt.
• Hide real-time P&L; evaluate only at session end.

When to Re-Evaluate the Strategy Itself

If your journal shows high rule adherence but persistent underperformance over 100+ trades, the edge may be temporal or regime-specific. Consider adapting filters (volatility, time-of-day) or pausing the system in unfriendly regimes.

One-page recovery journal template.

Checklist: The First 7 Days Back

• Days 1–3: No live trades; annotate past losers.
• Day 4: Sim trades only; focus on rule adherence.
• Day 5: Micro size; one trade only.
• Day 6–7: If adherence ≥ 85%, add second trade; otherwise repeat micro.