Anger Management and Stress

Your cell phone drops an important business call. You drop your iPod in a rain puddle. Your auto refuses to start, making your children late to school and you late to work. While we have more technology at the touch of a fingertip than any other generation before us, all that technology, while in some ways making our lives easier, can also create more stress. All that stress can result in anger – anger that things are not going your way, anger that things do not seem to be changing, anger that can result from being unhappy in your current relationship or current job. In turn, all that anger creates more stress – it is a never-ending cycle!

Most of us know that stress is not good for you – mentally or physically - but how do you deal with the day-to-day stress? If you have tried your own ways of coping with the stress and anger, but it just is not helping you, you may want to consider looking into anger management.

What is Anger Management?

Anger management is a therapeutic way to deal with anger and stress. You will see a therapist who will help you learn what triggers your anger, the degree of your anger, and how it affects you emotionally and physically. The therapist will also work with you to find a way to control the anger. Once you get the anger under control, you should see your stress level drop immensely.

Triggers

What is a trigger? A trigger is something that sets off your anger. Most of us do not recognize our anger triggers until we sit down with someone and start looking at our situation and reactions to situations. It is better to learn what your triggers are and learn to deal with them. This works better than constantly expressing your anger, which can make the situation worse and harm your career, family life, and relationships.

Once you have figured out what triggers your anger, the therapist may ask you to rate these triggers on a scale of 1 to 10 to see which evokes the most anger. He or she may ask you to write down the triggers then write down what this trigger really means to you. For example, you may get angry while driving, especially when someone pulls in front of you. What triggers that anger? It may be that you feel inferior because the person who cut you off has a newer car than you do or it may be that you feel he or she thinks they are better than you are. Taking a realistic look at these triggers and understanding how to deal with them will help decrease your anger.

Anger Management Techniques

How do you deal with this anger to keep it from running and ruining your life? The therapist may suggest anger management techniques such as deep breathing or meditation. He or she may also try to teach empathy and forgiveness towards a person who triggers your anger as a way to dealing with it. The therapist may also encourage you to improve your optimism or change the way you feel and speak about yourself.

Anger management techniques may vary from person to person, but the important thing is to work with your therapist until you find one or more of these management techniques that work for you.

Not all anger is unhealthy, but when it begins to take over your life and causes you stress, you need to look into ways to control that anger. Taking anger management classes can help you lead a healthier, happier, less stressed life.