Charts or indicators simply provide you with a visual reference point and potentially higher probability trades. You increase the chances of trading successfully, but that doesn't mean you'll make money. Every trader sees profits evaporate in the blink of an eye, including myself. You tell yourself, I should exit when the loss is only $500, but now it's $1500 in the red because you hope and pray it will come back. Hope and prayer are not a strategy. The likelihood of a $1500 loss bouncing back is as great as the possibility of it continuing to decline. Whether you buy a stock or derivatives with an embedded loss of $1000, there's a 50% chance of breaking even, or another $1000 loss. So if you win, you break even. If you lose, you lose $2000. It's almost a silly question, but that's how you view losing trades. You must treat it this way if the losing stock you hold reaches your stop loss. Remember, trading doesn't go according to plan, so there's no reason to believe it will work in your favor. You may want it to come back, but the market truly doesn't care what you want or wish for. Remember that 99% of traders will fail. They fail because they didn't manage their funds well. They don't take small losses, but let them turn into large losses. You should be ecstatic about small losses. You did the right thing. You avoided potential larger losses and are still in the game. Remember, holding the losing trade after the stop loss is your next trade. Choosing to continue holding a stock that you should sell or buy back is theoretically your new position. Are you satisfied with holding that position? If the answer is no, then you shouldn't hold it.