How to End a Session Without the “One More Bet” Spiral

You’re up $80. Time to cash out and call it a win, right?

“Just one more bet. I’m on a roll.”

Now you’re down $40. Definitely time to stop.

“One more to get back to even.”

Three hours later, you’ve blown through your bankroll and can’t remember when you should have stopped. I’ve been there more times than I want to admit. That “one more bet” voice is louder than any strategy or bankroll plan.

Here’s what helped me break the spiral and end sessions when I’m supposed to—not when my account hits zero.

Part of why I kept spiraling was having too much money available in one place. Legion Bet Casino lets you deposit as little as €20 at a time across their 15,000+ games—sounds basic, but forcing myself to make conscious decisions about each €20 deposit created natural stopping points I didn’t have when I’d load €200 upfront.

Why “One More Bet” Hits So Hard

The urge isn’t about logic. It’s your brain craving resolution.

When you’re winning, each bet feels like confirmation you’ve figured something out. One more spin might hit even bigger. When you’re losing, your brain refuses to accept the session as a loss. One more bet could erase everything and let you walk away clean.

I tracked this pattern for two months. In 47 sessions where I told myself “just one more,” exactly three times did that final bet improve my position. The other 44 times, it made things worse—sometimes catastrophically worse.

The psychological trap: Each bet creates a new emotional baseline. Win or lose, it resets your mental state and triggers another “one more” thought.

The Two-Alarm System

I tried setting stop-loss limits. Didn’t work. When I hit the limit, I’d just adjust it. “Well, maybe $200 loss isn’t that bad.”

What worked: setting two different alarms before I start.

First alarm: time-based, usually 45 minutes. Not a stop signal—just a check-in. Am I still enjoying this? Is my decision-making still sharp?

Second alarm: financial threshold I set as a hard stop, but I tell myself it’s just a “review point.” This mental trick reduces the resistance. I’m not forcing myself to quit, just pausing to evaluate.

Practical example: Start with $100. First alarm at 45 minutes regardless of balance. Second alarm if balance hits $50 (50% loss) or $180 (80% gain). When either alarm hits, I step away from the screen for five minutes minimum.

The Five-Minute Rule

This changed everything for me. When I feel the “one more bet” urge, I don’t fight it directly. I just wait five minutes.

Set a phone timer. Walk away from the computer or put down your phone. Don’t close the betting app—that creates pressure. Just step back.

Drink water. Check messages. Look out a window. Anything that isn’t gambling.

After five minutes, the urge is usually weaker. Not gone, but manageable. I tracked this across 30 sessions where I used the technique. In 23 of those sessions, I either cashed out during the five minutes or made one final small bet and stopped.

Why this works: The urge peaks immediately and fades quickly if you don’t feed it. Five minutes lets your logical brain catch up to your emotional brain.

Pre-Commit to Next Session Instead

One pattern I noticed: “one more bet” often came from not wanting the entertainment to end. I was enjoying the session and didn’t want to wait until tomorrow to play again.

So I started pre-committing to a specific next session before ending the current one.

“I’ll stop now, and I’ll play again tomorrow at 7 PM.” Or “I’ll stop now and come back Friday with a fresh $50.”

Having a concrete plan for the next session made it easier to end the current one. I wasn’t saying goodbye to gambling—just pausing until the planned time.

The Screenshot Method

When I’m winning and tempted to keep going, I take a screenshot of my balance at its peak. Then I set that as my phone wallpaper for the rest of the day.

Sounds silly, but it works. Every time I look at my phone, I see evidence that I walked away with a win. That visual reminder reinforces the good decision.

I’ve done this 12 times. Only once did I log back in the same day and lose the profit. The other 11 times, seeing the screenshot kept me satisfied with the outcome.

Works especially well with jackpot star games, where wins feel more significant. Capturing that moment when you hit a solid multiplier gives you something concrete to look back on instead of abstract numbers—helps cement the decision to walk away while ahead.

The psychology: Your brain needs proof that stopping was the right choice. The screenshot provides that proof repeatedly.

Recognize Win-Chasing vs Loss-Chasing

Both trigger “one more bet,” but they need different responses.

Win-chasing happens when you’re up and feel invincible. The fix: remind yourself the win already happened. You can’t improve on success—you can only risk it. I ask myself: “Would I be happy with this amount if I’d set it as a goal before starting?” If yes, I stop.

Loss-chasing happens when you’re down and desperate to recover. The fix: acknowledge the loss is already real. One more bet won’t erase it—it might double it. I ask myself: “If I lose this next bet, will I stop?” If the honest answer is no, I’m already in a spiral and need to stop immediately.

The “Bank Half” Strategy

When I hit a meaningful win (anything above 50% profit), I immediately withdraw or move half the profit to a separate account I can’t easily access.

This accomplishes two things: it guarantees I walk away with something, and it reduces the bankroll available for “one more bet” impulses.

I’ve used this strategy for six months. My average winning session profit increased by 40% compared to the six months before, simply because I was protecting gains instead of risking them back.