What is really happening when price sweeps a level and reverses, how to place stops that survive it, and why high leverage makes you the target.
Obvious levels attract stops. Stops are resting orders. Large participants need resting orders to fill size. A sweep through the obvious level, followed by a reversal, is the market doing what markets do: finding liquidity where it is. It feels personal because your stop was where everyone's stop was.
If the level is obvious, the sweep will be too. Put the stop beyond where the sweep would invalidate the idea, not at the level itself, and reduce size so that the wider stop still fits your risk budget. A wider stop with a smaller position has the same dollar risk and a much better survival rate.
Wait for the level to be swept and reclaimed, then enter in the direction of the reclaim with the stop beyond the sweep low. You are now using the same move that would have stopped you out. This single adjustment fixes more losing records than any indicator.
Liquidation levels cluster in predictable places, and liquidation heatmaps are public. A 50x position has its liquidation inside the first wick anyone would target. At that leverage you are not a trader with a stop; you are the order the sweep is looking for.