- A 27-year-old school teacher from California contemplated suicide after losing money trading on Robinhood.
- He says the platform is addictive and portrays investing like a video game.
- He reflects back on his downward spiral and advises new investors to play the long game.
- The author has chosen to write anonymously out of concern for his privacy. Insider has verified the author’s identity.
Editor’s note: The author is a 27-year-old male from California. We have chosen to publish this as an anonymous op-ed. A Robinhood spokesperson responded with comment and we have published the response in full below.
I have an addictive personality. When I was younger I frequently played video games for up to 12 hours at a time. I later binged other hobbies: golf, cycling, cooking, even reading. However, my most self-destructive foray was into the world of Robinhood, r/WallStreetBets, and day trading.
Despite my obsessive personality, I’ve had moments of sound, cogent decision making. When I graduated from college, I learned how to invest the proper way. That is, dollar cost averaging into a Roth IRA, into a mix of diversified index funds, that track well known indices like the S&P 500. I made a conscious decision to live a frugal lifestyle to save aggressively to secure my future.
