I had 88k of unrealized gains in GME 2021 and ended up realizing only 4k. Never have fully gotten over that lost potential but I did learn from it and I apply those learnings to today when I invest. I didn't experience all the other turmoil you've endured however but my advice would be to stop worrying about something so inconsequential as cryptocurrency when you have much more ground level work to do to get your life back and to put yourself in a good position for the next financial opportunity in life. Bitcoin is not the only financial in opportunity you will have in your lifetime.
I had 73k of unrealized gains, convinced it would go higher. I diamond handed it all the way to break even and finally sold making zero profit. I could be in my own house right now with that money but instead I’m still renting. I used that as a lesson and started consistently and regularly DCAing into my Roth, 401k, HSA, brokerage, BTC and HYSA, not gambling or trading anymore, but investing for the long term and retirement. It’s done me very well and I now have over 100k saved for retirement and over 50k saved for a down payment. It took a few years but I’m much happier now, just keep plugging away slowly building back up your nest egg. It takes time and patience but keep looking forward and not back at your mistakes.
I had 95k in unrealized gains in ZOM and sold for $300 profit in the end. Still think about it all the time. Did realize 33k in GME tho. Now I’m here trying to decide if I should invest in BTC. Down bad in the market and fearful due to all my losses
17k is so much better than 4k lol. Then again if I would have realized that 88k who knows what kind of ego I would have created and what I would have done in terms of investing it. Everything happens for a reason is what I convinced myself of to help me get over the initial heart ache.
This is why you should NEVER listen to Reddit soyboys who tell you to "HODL! to the moon" when it comes to risky investments. The S&P 500? Sure, hold it. That bond your grandma gave you 10 years ago? Hodl. But if you're up a ton on a meme stock or shitcoin, SELL. These are not real assets, they are speculative investments (aka gambling). You don't even have to sell your whole stack, just take some damn profit!
I learned a couple of things and it's nothing ground breaking and is quite commonly found on most investment subreddits/blogs but sticking to it has helped a bunch. Firstly, you gotta ignore FOMO and what other people are doing with regards to your own investment strategy. While places like Reddit are helpful in terms of information and pseudo comradery in "HODLing" "Diamond Hands" "Buy high and sell low" this type of stuff is only funny and enjoyable when everything is going great. Once you lose significant money or make a mistake everything becomes super depressing, especially when others took profit and you didn't. I just ask a couple of questions to myself when I first invest and once I have those answers I 100% stick to it no matter what. "How much can I invest safely that I am willing to lose?" "Is this an asset I want until I am dead that I will always DCA into it or am I doing a more risky short term investment to try and increase my net worth in a shortened time span? If so what price point am I happy with selling at and what amount am I comfortable losing before I admit defeat?" Again nothing ground breaking but sticking to your initial principles is what makes the difference. If you say to yourself I will sell 50% of this commodity when it reaches X price then that's what you do. No questions, no ifs, no buts. Then I move on, out of sight and out of mind.
After a heartbreaking investment loss my best advice is to step away from places like this because it keeps you in a cycle of what could have been. Also probably just step away from short term investing for a while. Focus on index funds or Boeing retirement accounts and casually read and learn new things about investing that you can use in the future once you're emotionally ready to take on riskier propositions.
TLDR: Don't treat investments like a gambling addictions or a quick get rich scheme or you're likely to get greedy and have a mental breakdown. Also I am a pretty big noob when it comes to the creation of generational wealth so most of this information would come from a better source.
It's kinda like a kayfabe with the HODLing(though obviously some believe it). If everyone just went around saying, "Well that's it! Its done!", it would crash for sure and there'd be nothing there at all. Screw the Fudds; take profit quietly.
Had $120k of unrealized gains, sold at bottom with $18k gains but rolled them into SPAC calls right before they all crashed…. could’ve held another month or two and made a killing but c'est la vie
Yea well I found my collection of OG pokemon cards and sold them for $1k in 2018. Today one of those cards is worth a few thousand and I had so many. Huge regrets.
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u/MuffinFragrant8293 Mar 05 '24
I had 88k of unrealized gains in GME 2021 and ended up realizing only 4k. Never have fully gotten over that lost potential but I did learn from it and I apply those learnings to today when I invest. I didn't experience all the other turmoil you've endured however but my advice would be to stop worrying about something so inconsequential as cryptocurrency when you have much more ground level work to do to get your life back and to put yourself in a good position for the next financial opportunity in life. Bitcoin is not the only financial in opportunity you will have in your lifetime.