What do you do most when you start tilting?

[Sooga]

.... other than start kicking your dog around like Vehn?

Obviously this question isn't aimed at those who claim they 'don't tilt'.

Do you start playing more passively postflop? More aggressively? Start playing looser preflop? Start playing looser everywhere? Play higher to try to get your losses back faster? Personally when I go on tilt I still stay pretty tight preflop but I notice I really really start to chicken out on easy river value bets. I'm curious what you guys do.

[VinnyTheFish]

i play chess online, go for a walk with the dog, (so i do not kick her). I'll read Card Plyer or a poker book. I usually get very tight. Anything to contol my italian temper.

otherwise, i'll watch a little spice!

[gaylord focker]

When you feel yourself starting to go off, you should play much tighter, and a bit more passively postflop. I think the natural reaction is to want to gamble it up a bit more, so you will find yourself coming in with more hands than you normally would. More importantly, if you are tilting, you probably lack the judgment you need to play your marginal hands and make those crucial tough decisions. When I start to feel like this, I try to tighten up, and I forget about being super aggresive, and I try not to make too many moves. I think reverting back to solid ABC poker in these spots is best.

Of course if we really wanted to solve to problem we could could just rack up and hit the road, but we all know that's a bit easier said than done.

[Knox]

I get tighter and try not to play any hands I wouldn't go all in on.

[shemp]

Steam on the turn. Early position limper, I raise a big pair and the flop comes 533, trn 2, and the nimrod who c/r the turn is the loose passive type who has either 55, 22, a 3, 64, or A4 -- I 3-bet the turn and say you've earned it buddy, then call the re-raise and river. I'm not much of a tilter/steamer, but this scenario seems to offend my sense of entitlement and I go haywire, looking forward to the guy showing K3 to beat KK. I'm okay by the next hand though.

[Diplomat]

What do I do, as in how does tilt affect my game, or what do I do about it?

Well, what usually happens is that I play a somewhat looser and significantly more aggressive, particularly pre-flop. I'll start raising utg with 77, three-betting with AJo, etc.

Then I'll suddenly realize what I'm doing, and shout for racks. I'll take a walk, and vent it out with a friend over a coffee, stretch my back, or quit for the day if it's not worth getting back in the game.

If it's a particularily bad brand of tilt, I've got to break up the sessions with some non-poker activities. Last summer I had a particularly bad run coupled with a bad mental attitude at the table for a few sessions. I up and drove to Montreal for 3 days with my girlfriend and refused to think or talk about poker once, despite the 5-hour car ride and her enthusiasm for the game. Worked like a charm.

I guess when I go on tilt (although it really does not happen that often) I play like a LAG for a short while. Then I just quit and do something non-poker, for however long I need to. Hands down my worst sessions have been when I returned to the table with tilt still in my system. I put on seminars about how to burn chips like there is no tomorrow when this happens.

-Diplomat

[Paul2432]

If I am playing on-line, I'll switch to the play money tables for a while.

Paul