Topic: Controlling Anger -- Before It Controls You
RainbowTrout's photo
Mon 05/21/07 05:21 PM
Found this great site. I have always thought anger management was a
contradiction in terms.

We all know what anger is, and we've all felt it: whether as a fleeting
annoyance or as full-fledged rage.

Anger is a completely normal, usually healthy, human emotion. But when
it gets out of control and turns destructive, it can lead to
problems—problems at work, in your personal relationships, and in the
overall quality of your life. And it can make you feel as though you're
at the mercy of an unpredictable and powerful emotion. This brochure is
meant to help you understand and control anger.

What is Anger?

The Nature of Anger

Anger is "an emotional state that varies in intensity from mild
irritation to intense fury and rage," according to Charles Spielberger,
PhD, a psychologist who specializes in the study of anger. Like other
emotions, it is accompanied by physiological and biological changes;
when you get angry, your heart rate and blood pressure go up, as do the
levels of your energy hormones, adrenaline, and noradrenaline.

Anger Management

The goal of anger management is to reduce both your emotional feelings
and the physiological arousal that anger causes. You can't get rid of,
or avoid, the things or the people that enrage you, nor can you change
them, but you can learn to control your reactions.

Uh oh. this next part applies to me.:smile:

People who are easily angered generally have what some psychologists
call a low tolerance for frustration, meaning simply that they feel that
they should not have to be subjected to frustration, inconvenience, or
annoyance. They can't take things in stride, and they're particularly
infuriated if the situation seems somehow unjust: for example, being
corrected for a minor mistake.

Yup, this next section is me is me. I think it might be why I am still
single.

Unexpressed anger can create other problems. It can lead to pathological
expressions of anger, such as passive-aggressive behavior (getting back
at people indirectly, without telling them why, rather than confronting
them head-on) or a personality that seems perpetually cynical and
hostile. People who are constantly putting others down, criticizing
everything, and making cynical comments haven't learned how to
constructively express their anger. Not surprisingly, they aren't likely
to have many successful relationships.

http://www.apa.org/topics/controlanger.html

RainbowTrout's photo
Mon 05/21/07 05:42 PM
I think site explains why I like to punch walls and kick things.laugh