Anger management

 

Anger Management: Effective Strategies and Therapies

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Do you get lit up if someone cuts you up on the road? Or if someone’s offhand to you on the phone? Or your child just won’t do what they’re told? Anger is a normal – and sometimes even useful – emotion, but it can get out of control, damaging both your health and work or family relationships.

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Understanding the Causes of Anger

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There are different ways to start addressing the problem. Identifying the underlying causes can be one way to begin to take control, where psychodynamic therapy might be useful. Here are some examples of different causes of anger and how psychotherapy might help:

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• High-Stress Environment: Growing up in a high-stress environment can normalize anger as a response. Psychodynamic therapy can help uncover these early experiences and understand how they influence current behaviour.
   

• Feeling Unheard: If you’ve always felt that your voice isn’t heard, it can lead to frustration and anger. Therapy can provide a safe space to explore these feelings and develop healthier ways to communicate.
   

• Hidden Self-Esteem Issues: Low self-esteem can make it difficult to tolerate frustration, leading to anger. Therapy can help identify and address these underlying self-esteem issues, fostering a more positive self-image.

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In-the-Moment Strategies

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Other people may prefer more in-the-moment strategies, identifying triggering situations, and trying to nip anger in the bud as it happens. Perhaps thinking errors can be identified such as All or Nothing Thinking, Low Frustration Tolerance, or Demands on Self or Others that might be contributing to the problem. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) might be particularly useful in identifying these.

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Mindfulness and Relaxation Techniques

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Mindfulness, relaxation skills, and deep-breathing exercises can also help, along with using key words or visualization strategies. Importantly, tackling anger isn’t about denying or bottling up feelings, which may well be legitimate, but finding more constructive ways of acting and expressing what you’re feeling, so as to find new and better ways forward with those around you.

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Building a Strong Therapeutic Relationship

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Whichever therapeutic approach you choose, the key is not just the method, but the strength of the relationship you build with the therapist.

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Keywords:

 

Anger management, anger control, psychodynamic therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), mindfulness techniques, relaxation skills, deep-breathing exercises, anger triggers, emotional regulation, therapeutic relationship
 

​Here are some interesting TedX Talks on different ways to think about anger:

Anger Is Your Ally: A Mindful Approach to Anger

Opting out of Anger

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Further info on tackling self-esteem and low confidence issues can be found here:

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Mayo Clinic

NHS

Mind

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