Like millions of other families, we have gone through facing the battle of a child contracting dengue fever. Yes, it is a battle. The two eldest—who were 4 and 5 years old—both came down with the virus at the same time. What a nightmare.
Son No. 2 caught the disease again in 2015 and it is really no easier when your child is an adult and has to spend a week in the hospital. The youngest had a fever a couple of weeks ago and, fortunately, was diagnosed with the flu and not dengue. When a young child gets dengue and has to be confined, it is a traumatic experience for him. But for the parent, the worst part is waiting for the diagnosis.
Dengue is a nasty disease because the patient has a fever and it is only after the fever goes away and you think all is good that then the problems start. It used to be that you had to worry for several days while having daily blood tests to finally come to a certain diagnosis. That period is the hard part for a parent because you do not know what you are up against and really cannot do much to help your child.
Investing in the stock market and pushing the “Buy” button to execute an order is exactly like having a fever and then waiting for the diagnosis. No matter the brave face and strong words you might share with fellow investors, you know exactly what I mean and how it feels, no matter how confident you might be about your investment decision.
Sure, you have your trading plan and “years” of experience have steeled your discipline. Yet, we all know that deep inside, it is as if this was your first trade, sort of like the first time you got behind the wheel of a car. No matter what your trading experience has been, each trade is unique and stands alone. Yesterday’s success or failure means nothing. In truth, that is one of the reasons traders trade because of the challenge and excitement. The profit or loss is only a way of keeping score.
In the last few years, being the parent of a child who potentially has dengue has dramatically changed. No longer is there the need to wait days for a diagnosis with the relatively new NS1 antigen test for dengue introduced in 2006. Draw a blood sample and in less than an hour, the results are back and you can go home—maybe stopping for ice cream on the way—or gird your loins for war with the virus. But, at least, that period of nail-biting fear is eliminated.
You buy your stock and the price goes down before it reaches a level to take a profit. Is it the flu or dengue? Is there an NS1 test for the stock market? Yes, this is shameless plug for the seminars I will be holding through the end of the year.
E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Visit my web site at www.mangunonmarkets.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis tools provided by the COL Financial Group Inc.