"Fear of stop loss" is a very common and tormenting psychological barrier that almost all Futures Trading participants, especially Newbies, will experience. This is not simply a matter of being "cowardly," but rather has profound psychological and cognitive reasons behind it.

Let's thoroughly analyze why you are afraid of stop loss and how to overcome it.

1. Why are you "afraid" of stop loss? - Root Cause Analysis

1. The "loss aversion" mentality is at play.

This is the core principle of psychology. Behavioral economics proves that the pain of losing 100 yuan is much greater than the pleasure of gaining 100 yuan (about 2-2.5 times). In Futures Trading, stop loss means "confirming the loss," which sends huge pain signals to your brain, causing you to instinctively resist and avoid it.

2. The fantasy of "I could have"

When you set a stop loss and the market moves in the direction you originally expected, it's the most painful situation. You would think, "If I hadn't set a stop loss, not only would I not have lost money, but I would have made a profit!" This feeling of "missing out" is more difficult to bear than simply losing money because it makes you feel like you "did something wrong" and were "foolish." After a few times, you will start to doubt the necessity of setting a stop loss.

3. Personalize market behavior

You see stop loss as being "defeated" by the market or "proving yourself wrong." Your self-esteem cannot accept it. Subconsciously, you think that not closing a position is just a "paper loss," not a real failure; once you set a stop loss, it confirms the mistake in your judgment. You are competing with the market, rather than trading according to plan.

4. The wrong "hope" has replaced "discipline"

When your position is in a floating loss, you might think to yourself: "Just wait a little longer, maybe it will go up/down again, what if?" You replace cold trading discipline with a faint "hope." You fear that a stop loss will make you miss this "what if."

5. Over-leveraged positions, unable to bear the pain

If your single trade loss amount is too large, exceeding your psychological tolerance (for example, more than 5%-10% of your account funds), then every stop loss feels like "cutting flesh." A huge amount can instill a physiological fear in you, making it difficult to maintain discipline.

6. Lack of positive feedback

In your trading experience, the painful memories of "stop loss followed by a market reversal" are likely far greater than those of "stop loss saved my life." This is because the emotional impact of the former is much stronger, leaving a deep impression on you, thus leading to the erroneous perception that "stop loss is useless."

---

2. How to Overcome the Fear of Stop Loss? - Solution

Understanding the reason, we can take targeted measures.

1. Cognitive Restructuring: Redefining the meaning of stop loss

This is the most important step. You must wholeheartedly agree with the following points:

· Stop loss is the "cost" of trading, it is the "insurance premium". Doing business requires paying rent, driving requires buying insurance, and engaging in futures trading requires accepting stop loss. It is the fee you must pay to survive and not be swept away by a wave.
· The stop loss protects your "principal", not your "face". The purpose of trading is to make money, not to prove that you are always right. By protecting your principal, you have the chance to win back in the next trade.
· Experts do not avoid stop loss, but rather they execute stop losses decisively and without hesitation. They can make profits not because they win every trade, but because the profits from winning trades exceed the losses from losing trades (profit-loss ratio). And all of this is predicated on controlling losses through stop loss.

2. Establish an absolutely mechanical trading system

Fear comes from uncertainty and subjective decision-making. You need a "ruthless" system:

· Set a stop loss level before opening a position: Don't wait until you've opened the position to look. Based on technical analysis (such as previous lows/highs, support and resistance levels, ATR indicators, etc.), establish an objective and unchangeable stop loss point.
· Calculate the single transaction loss amount: Ensure that the potential loss of each trade is 1%-2% of your total capital (this is the commonly recommended risk management ratio). This way, even if you have a consecutive stop loss of 10 times, you will only lose 10%-20% of your principal, leaving you with a chance to turn things around.
· Use conditional orders/stop loss orders: Do not manually stop loss! Place the stop loss order at the same time as the limit order. Let the system execute it to avoid your hesitation.

3. Deliberate practice to develop "muscle memory"

· Practice on a demo account: Execute the process of "open position - set stop loss - stop loss - open position again" repeatedly without losing money, until you feel that stop loss is as natural as breathing.
· Start with a small amount of capital: Use an amount that you can afford to lose completely (for example, 100U) to start trading live, with the aim of "practicing your mindset" rather than making money. When you no longer feel a rush at small stop losses, then consider gradually increasing your capital.

4. Conduct trading records and review

Create a trading journal. After each stop loss, record:

· Why set a stop loss here? (Logic)
· How did the market move after the stop loss?
· Did this stop loss adhere to the discipline?

By reviewing, you will find:

· Most of the time, stop loss helps you avoid greater losses.
· Even if the market reverses after several stop losses, if you do not set a stop loss, you may have been liquidated during a previous major fluctuation.

5. Manage your position - this is the fundamental solution.

Reduce your position to a level that allows you to "sleep well at night." If you are so anxious about a stop loss order that you can't bear to look at the market, it means your position is too heavy. Lighten your position until you feel that "it doesn't matter if this trade loses," and your fear of stop loss will immediately decrease significantly.

Summary

Your fear of stop loss is essentially a mixture of human nature, cognitive biases, and poor trading habits.

Please remember a saying that is widely circulated in the trading community:
"Cut losses short and let profits run."

Fear of stop loss is human nature; but overcoming this fear and strictly adhering to discipline is the dividing line between traders and ordinary people.

From now on, treat stop loss as your most reliable "bodyguard" rather than your enemy. It is the only secret weapon that can help you survive longer in this cruel crypto futures trading market.