[lehighguy]

Work up the limits. I used to get upset over $5. Now I don't sweat $2k swings in a day. When your playing on winnings its easier to handle.

If you get affected by every single hand you will be miserable and it will hurt your game. My friend plays the same games as me and the other night he was up $2k. Then he threw a f-ucking [censored] because he busted out of a $50 tourney on a bad beat. WTF. He's made 15k since summer session began. What a little [censored].

Anyway, the only way you are going to feel comfortable with a game is when you know that you can beat it. You'll know you can beat it when you understand the game. You'll understand the game by studying the game and playing a lot. That's the whole concept behind working up the limits.

Bluffing is a big part of big games. If your a scared tight ass [censored] like I was, you need to take baby steps. My hymen broke playing 5/10 (6max). That is where I started learning how to play actual poker. 200NL is where I was actually able to apply some of the knowledge I gained playing 6max.
In other words, you can actually bluff and gain information on peoples hands when you bet in NL.

However, I never would have been bluffing if I hadn't played 6max. 6max forced me to play aggresively, and more importantly, see more showdowns. As a result I got accustomed to playing not the nuts, I learned it could win a hand.

My progression went like this:
$5 Home Games
$25NL
$50NL
$3/$6
Now the real poker:
$5/$10 (6max)
$200NL
$600NL (+$50SnGs)

The whole process took one year of goof off poker, almost one year of serious poker.

P.S. If memory from $3/$6 serves me you should ALWAYS call on the river unless you've missed a draw.