*The views expressed in the blog are those of the author.

Anger is an emotion and like any other emotion it conveys some message.  It is normal to feel bad and get angry when someone betrays our trust. We feel frustrated if our efforts aren’t appreciated or when we find some sort of injustice with us or anyone else. Sometimes being angry might give us the courage to take a stand or make a change.

With the current pandemic, many aspects of our daily lives have become stressful than usual. Being confined may irritate us or when things are not in our control, we feel more frustrated, expressing this more readily toward others.

It is perfectly normal to feel this emotion. But the way we express it, makes the difference. It becomes a problem when it is felt too often or when we express it in an unhealthy way that causes negative impact on our health and well-being.

Sometimes we feel that venting anger is healthy, is justified or it is unavoidable, but the truth is that anger  has a number of negative impacts; in the way people perceive you or in the way of success or problems at work or in the overall quality of life. We need to manage our anger for our own well-being in all aspects, physically, mentally, emotionally, socially.

When we say, we need to manage our anger, it does not mean to suppress our emotion. What we need is to understand the message behind the emotion and express it in a healthy way, without losing self-control. Managing our anger is an art and mastering this art requires practice, the more we practice, the easier it gets. Anger management strategies can be beneficial and can help us discover healthy ways to express our feelings. Learning to control our anger and express it appropriately will help us build better relationships, achieve our goals, and lead a healthier, more satisfying life.

Research shows that cognitive behavioural interventions are effective in anger management. They are based on the notion that our thoughts, feelings and behaviours are all connected, and our thoughts and behaviours work like a fuel for our emotions. So sometimes the best way to calm down might be to change the channel in our brain and focus on something else altogether.   

We shouldn’t always blame people or external circumstances for our inability to keep our cool rather understanding the things that trigger our anger will help us plan accordingly. Recognizing the warning signs early can help us take action to prevent our anger from reaching a boiling point. Sometimes it is good to remove ourselves from that situation, if possible.

There are many different relaxations exercises we can utilize to reduce anger, find the one that works best for us, such as, breathing exercises or talking to someone, maybe friends, and listening to their perspective, sometimes even talking to the person whom we are angry with might help. Sometimes, quietly counting to 10 will give us enough time to think before we blast.

Improving our ability to manage anger has several benefits. We’ll have better control when life’s challenges turn up the heat when we know how to express ourselves assertively rather than losing our control.

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