Managing Anger
Anger is a pervasive problem in our society, and the levels of anger displayed by some individuals seem to be spiralling out of control. As a society, we pay the price for uncontrolled anger in the form of broken families, medical expenses and law enforcement bills.
The first step is to take responsibility for your angry behaviour rather than blaming it on others, and insisting that “they made” you angry. Your anger is a sign that something needs to be changed in your life – maybe you are sad or deeply hurting inside. Learning to control your temper involves developing awareness and communicating your angry feelings in an effort to identify and heal the source(s) of your anger.
How to Reduce your Anger Levels
To reduce your anger levels, you may need a combination of different methods, such as:
- Physical forms of release: exercises such as walking, running, and swimming.
- Intensive inner-child work: the inner child is the part of you that is spontaneous and playful. Hurtful childhood experiences or childhood trauma may have harmed your inner child, and you may be carrying this pain around. This may lead to angry behaviour, or you may be using anger to block the pain.
- Mindfulness living: living with awareness, non-judgmentally observing your thoughts and feelings. Mindful breathing involves placing the attention on the breath as it enters and leaves the nostrils. This has a powerful effect on both the mind and body.
The above methods could help to transform anger into positive behaviour. Once you begin to release pent-up anger, you will find managing your anger becomes easier. The frequency and duration of anger episodes will diminish, and you will not react from an angry state of mind. Perhaps one of the best gifts you can give yourself and others is becoming as calm as possible.
