Could you live without cryptocurrency in your life? For its proponents, bitcoin is a drug that’s had them hooked since the day they discovered it. Not all holders feel the same way though. Stung by massive losses and the realisation that cryptocurrency is taking over their life, some traders forced themselves to walk away for good.
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Moving On When the Music Stops
“After spending 5 years in crypto I am out,” began the message board confession. “Yesterday’s crash was brutal, and something I can’t wrap my mind around changed when I woke up this morning. I don’t want to wage-cuck but I will. And instead of spending my entire days behind a screen in a room I am gonna get a job, hang out with the friends that I have been neglecting and just be a cucked member of society.”
The prospect of quitting crypto altogether – everything it stands for and the culture that comes with it – is anathema to most. Being in crypto is like supporting your football team; it’s less something you choose, and more something that’s thrust upon you. Buying bitcoin is akin to being inducted into the Mafia: once you’re in, you’re in for life. But life isn’t always understanding, and for some, cursed by their own greed or poor decision-making, cryptocurrency can become a millstone around their neck, a dead weight more burdensome than the heaviest of altbags.
Crypto Is a Hard Habit to Break
Few tears will be shed over those who came for the profits, got burnt, and then scampered back whence they came. The remainder who are, all memes aside, in it for the tech, and for the financial freedom cryptocurrency can provide, won’t be going anywhere. Not all of those planning to abandon the good ship crypto are doing so because they got rekt, it should be noted. Some have simply become too immersed.
“I’m starting to consider what to do in a few months time,” conceded one freelancer, pondering an exit strategy. Having been working full-time in crypto for six months, while racking up long hours, he’s starting to feel the strain. Despite having been enthralled with bitcoin since 2013, being forced to eat, sleep, and talk crypto 24/7 is taking its toll. He continued:
The Men Who Sacrificed Everything
New research has sought to dispel the notion that women are more risk averse than men. That may be the case, but anecdotally at least, crypto’s quitters are overwhelmingly male. While the rage-quitting stories of anonymous message board posters and pseudonymous Telegram users are hard to verify, collectively, the narrative is clear: due to financial or mental health reasons, a growing number of guys are seeking a clean break.
“Just calculated my losses, 76% loss in 2 months, feeling like quitting crypto,” reads one message on the notorious Rekt Plebs Telegram. “I’m literally done with crypto,” mopes another. It is no coincidence that many of the same people who lost years of their lives to World of Warcraft have succumbed to a similar fate with crypto. The dopamine rush that fuels the rewards mechanism in each of these pursuits is identical.
A Serious Addiction
“I am addicted to this shit,” admitted the /biz/ poster mentioned at the outset. “I need to step away and do something else, just like WoW was 5-6 years back, crypto is dictating my daily life. It’s not healthy and it’s damaging relationships with friends, family; and mentally it’s taking its toll too. Maybe I will just a break, but at this point not intending to come back for some time. Crypto is my addiction, I need to get it out to stop a vicious cycle.” As for his portfolio, he recounts:
180k at my peak, 10k now, cashed out 25k along the way. Wouldn’t know what to do with the 180k if I got there again. Dreadful. But I learned many important lessons. I figure I’d say goodbye to the board which kept me entertained for the past 2 years. Leaving 40$ in ETH & MKR since I CBA to cash [out].
Within minutes of the wallet’s private key being posted, it had been emptied of its shrapnel by a grateful fellow anon.
Humans are obsessive in their habits. We have a tendency to do things 100% or not at all. That’s why guys will hammer the gym six days a week or stay rooted to the couch, and women will yo-yo between dieting and binging. Cryptocurrency, like all of the best things in life, is best enjoyed in moderation, but that’s easier said than done.
Most people have the ability to step away from Tradingview when crypto starts to take over. But for those who struggle with impulse control, taking a complete break from cryptocurrency may be the only option. Walking away in the depths of a bear market is one thing. Staying away when the next bull run kicks in may be quite another.
Could you live without cryptocurrency in your life? Let us know in the comments section below.
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