Managing Anger

Here is a quick guide to Managing Anger

Anger is a natural emotion that we all experience.  However, if your anger is harming you or others around you it’s time to contain your anger.

 ·      Identify the people/situations that trigger your anger. Ask yourself why they are triggering your anger? Ask yourself is it worth getting angry about? Think about the repercussions – these could be shame, guilt, remorse?

·       Express your needs and wants assertively using ‘I’ statements e.g. ‘I feel hurt when…’ rather than using blaming statements such as ‘you made me angry’

·       Take your anger out on a punch bag – this way you are getting your feelings out without hurting yourself or anyone else

·        Use art or write a journal to express your feelings and emotions. This can be helpful in managing the build-up of negative feelings and emotions

·        Build empathy into your daily life – try and see things from the other person’s perspective

·         Don’t try to communicate and work things out when you are still angry

·       If possible, walk away from a situation – this can reduce the ‘fire meets fire’ response – where you and the other person(s) end up shouting or screaming at each other

·        Adopt the ABC technique – it can help to see a person/situation in a different way and diffuse your feelings

 

“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness”

Ralph Waldo Emerson