Anger Management

The term anger management commonly refers to a system of psychological therapeutic techniques and exercises by which someone with excessive or uncontrollable anger & aggression can control or reduce the triggers, degrees, and effects of an angered emotional state. Some popular anger management techniques include relaxation techniques, cognitive restructuring, problem solving, and improving communication strategies. In some countries, courses in anger management may be mandated by their legal system. According to St. Johns University's psychology professor Ray DiGiuseppe "Because anger has been viewed as a secondary emotion by most clinical theories, no anger disorders are included in the present version of DSM-IV-TR, and this is unlikely to change in DSM-V." Despite this, anger experts like Eva L. Feindler speak of "anger-related disorders". DiGiuseppe writes that after reviewing "the existing outcome studies on anger treatments, we concluded that while some successful interventions for anger had been developed, these interventions were generally less successful than psychotherapeutic interventions for anxiety and depression. Also, the majority of the research focused on a narrow range of cognitive-behavioral therapies. Clearly, we need to explore a wide range of treatments to develop truly effective approaches to helping those who suffer with anger problems."

With regard to interpersonal anger, Dr. Eva L. Feindler recommends that people try, in the heat of an angry moment, to see if they can understand where the alleged perpetrator is coming from. Empathy is very difficult when one is angry, but it can make all the difference in the world. Taking the other person's point of view can be excruciating when in the throes of anger, but with practice it can become second nature. Of course, once the angry person is in conditions of considering the opposite position, then anger based on righteous indignation tends to disappear. Sometimes the term "anger management" refers to an educational process during which students learn very basic anger issues. For example, people rarely distinguish between the emotion of anger and the behavior they exhibit when angry. Most often people believe that when overcome by anger they are out of control. In fact, they are most often very much in control of their behavior while not in control of the emotion. It is often difficult to accept this as fact as it is much easier to excuse one's misbehavior when the behavior was committed while one was out of control. Anger management classes attempt to remind students of their personal responsibility while providing strategies to assist in avoiding having the emotion of anger in the first place. Basic self cares (adequate sleep, exercise, and avoidance of drugs and alcohol) together with stress reduction actually seem to help reduce the number and scale of anger episodes

Anger Management Techniques

Anger is one of the most common and destructive delusions, and it afflicts our mind almost every day. To solve the problem of anger we first need to recognize the anger within our mind, acknowledge how it harms both our self and others, and appreciate the benefits of being patient in the face of difficulties. We then need to apply practical methods in our daily life to reduce our anger and finally to prevent it from arising at all.

Because it is based on an exaggeration, anger is an unrealistic mind Because it is based on an exaggeration, anger is an unrealistic mind; the intrinsically faulty person or thing that it focuses on does not in fact exist. Moreover, as we shall see, anger is also an extremely destructive mind that serves no useful purpose whatsoever. Having understood the nature and disadvantages of anger, we then need to watch our mind carefully at all times in order to recognize it whenever it begins to arise. This explanation of how to overcome our anger through practising patience is based on Guide to the Bodhisattvas Way of Life, the famous poem by the great Buddhist Master Shantideva. Though composed over a thousand years ago, this is one of the clearest and most powerful explanations of the subject ever written, and is just as relevant today as it was then.