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Scottie_Boi
In English I can see it is very similar to "once" and "then", "once something has happened, then the outcome".
So yeah cause and effect and even sequence of events makes perfect sense.
A closer translation might me "As soon as", or even the lexically very similar "once": "Once you pop, you can't stop". 一砰就癮 (I know, 砰 isn't a very satisfying translation for "pop", but it's what my dictionary gave me).
There's a sense of immediacy in the expression. The very moment you admit to making a mistake, BAM! All is lost. It's not admitting, and the sooner or later you'll lose everything; the effect immediately follows the cause.