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Seven Anger Management Techniques That Work

By Operation-Meditation

How to keep your temper in check

Anger is a normal, healthy, human emotion, but, like other emotions, it can get out of hand and become destructive. That’s when you need anger management to keep your temper from ruining your life. Anger management begins with classes to teach people basic anger issues, so let’s start by finding out what anger is.

Emotion versus behavior

Anger is an emotion you experience when you believe you have been offended or wronged, and causes you to react by wanting to retaliate. Anger management classes try to put across the difference between the emotion of anger and the behavior that results from being angry. Most people think that when they are angry, they lose control of themselves. In reality, they are still in control of their behavior, but not of the emotion. Anger management classes try to provide students with strategies to avoid getting angry and exercises to control the effects of anger.

Make the effort to keep in control

Here are seven anger management techniques that have proven effective.

1. Take a break and relax – Simple relaxation tools can help you calm down. Step away from the situation, if you can, and take a moment to relax. One of the best ways to do this is through meditation. When you find your anger running away with you, find a nice, quiet place where you can sit down and meditate for a while. Take deep, measured breaths and imagine calming scenery. After a while, you’ll find your body loosening up and your mind thinking more rationally.

2. Change the way you think – Logic can overcome anger so reason with yourself. An angry person becomes demanding, shows exaggerated behaviour and tends to over-react. Cognitive restructuring, as this technique is called, helps you think in more positive terms and makes you look at the situation in a more balanced, rational way.

3. Deal with it – Not every problem has a ready solution [comma] and this can make a person very angry. If a solution doesn’t immediately present itself, face the problem and decide how you will handle it. Make a plan and work at it. Give it your best shot and you’ll find that merely doing something about the problem will keep you from staying angry.

4. Think before you talk – Before you say anything when you’re angry, slow down and think about your response. The wrong words have a way of making an angry situation even worse. Listen to what the other person is saying before you reply. Even better, think of what the other person is “really” saying, and try to get to the bottom of the conflict.

5. Keep it light – Use humor to help you overcome your anger. Don’t take yourself too seriously and think of the situation in a funny way. If you can think of something funny to say that will defuse a tense situation, do it. By trying to look at the humorous side of things or people, you can keep your own anger under control.

6. Get away – If you find yourself in an environment that makes you angry, move away and find a place that will calm you down. Better still, avoid a place or situation that tends to make you angry. This applies to times of the day as well. If dealing with issues at certain times makes you short-tempered, choose other hours to do the job.

7. Work out – Exercise can do wonders for a hot temper. Physical activity stimulates chemicals in the brain that make you feel more relaxed. Release your pent-up anger on a punching bag, an oval or a ball and wall. Exercise works very well when you feel you’re about ready to explode.

Remember that no matter how justified you feel in being angry, anger management techniques like these will help keep you on top of the situation.

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