Do you have anger and if you do, do you like it? How can it be leveled or kept in a balanced state? Does it fuel your drive or perhaps can you be prisoner to the emotion of anger? Why or how can anger be deadly or counter-productive? How does it get out of control? Do you have good anger management as well the needed deescalating skills in coping with your anger? How do you think your anger was made manifest? If given the circumstances your childhood was different, do you think you’d have less anger?
Quote:
“Let us not look back in anger, nor forward in fear, but around in awareness.†James Thurber
Quote:
"Anger and intolerance are the enemies of correct understanding." Mahatma Gandhi
Quote:
"Expressing anger is a form of public littering." Willard Gaylin
When angry the trick is to deescalate by removing yourself from the situation or refocusing unto another task. If you are in a situation where anger is present know that first under all anger are cognitive distortions. These are usually based on unfinished business and unresolved issues on your part. A danger is if you give in to anger it escalates as pouring gasoline unto a fire. Your brain is being flooded with chemicals and hormones. Anger is in a sense a temporary psychosis. You are not dealing with the situation or angry at the situation per se but rather are projecting your unfinished issues and a wounded ego self unto the situation.
Having an internal locus of control you take personal responsibility and problem solve or refocus but do not give in to the base emotion of anger. If you have an external locus of control you may blame the situation or the person for your discomfort but you are being fooling yourself. Example of how I handled an anger provoking situation:
The Road Rage Incident: I have a behavior, again learned, not wanting to rush to the red light. I have found out that if one is caught at one red light, one is bound to be caught at the next one. I do not like this. I must say I have found preferable a smooth transition of going continually through a green light after green light. I will slow down if I perceive myself coming toward a red light. Well evidently someone behind me did not like me slowing down. They first high blasted me with their high beam. They then got in front of me and intentionally slowed down even perhaps to a dangerous level. They would not let me pass. Every time I changed lane they followed suit.
The irony was we were in front of a police sun station. I asked myself, "Where is a cop when you need them?" Well I was irate, being initially triggered. I flashed high beam as well as honked horn. Then a part of my intellect took over. I could have gone on being irate. I instead slowed down and turned off on an exit rather than play useless mind games.
Now the scenario is I could have cognitively been caught up in useless mind games. True I was initially triggered (which I was not proud of). I disengaged mentally from my anger with such useless thought conjectures such as, "it's not fair. He is an idiot, etc. I would have been consumed in an endless cycle of escalating road rage. I had a high emotional adrenaline rush whenever I have either a profound thought or insight. I disengaged. I took back control. I did not give in to my anger, except for that initial trigger. Again I am not proud of. I do not like categorically acting in an irrational fashion.
I went home happy with a smile on my face. This other person probably could have gone home irate and taken some time to calm down.
I am peaceful and I do not wish to harm anyone, I say I hope my emotions don’t give in to anger and I become as one possessed. For anger is temporary psychosis. I would like protecting self as well those who I love, but to do minimal damage and use force only that is needed. I think it a fool indeed who believes that what he thinks, feels and believes necessitates one is absolutely correct. How much of what we know is to be trusted? How much of what we have learned is written in eternal stone, and not subject to revision? Even science has been written many times over since the dawn of history.
What is it I am wishing to impart is keep an open mind and that we don't know it all. The final fact is we cannot always trust our senses. Look at the history of people being executed, because of eye witness testimony. A sure sign for me of distorted reasoning is when speaks with an angry heart. There is a sliver of truth there, but it is camouflaged by the person's unfinished business. So what does one do if they happen to be an angry individual?
Seek counsel and multiple viewpoints, before making a decision. That is part of the glory and the sorrow of our brains. Our 5 senses can impart much beauty from this world. Our perceptions can also be woefully off, much to our ruin. The self-righteous who held under the sway of anger are wrong. It seems as there our ghosts in our past which have gotten lost and stay with our system apparently forever. I have this thinking if children would only be taught reason with love, safety and proper guidelines they would grow up with more self esteem, be more cognitively grounded and be less prone to anger.
Anger is a cancer to the human consciousness. It distorts our ability to deal with reality with a balance of love mixed in with reason. Anger colors our perceptions so that we make the wrong decisions and act irrationally. Anger generally elongates the attainment of our dreams and potential. The best way to deal with anger is to prevent it in the first place. I believe a person nurtured with love and positive regard develops a better self -image and self-esteem. A person who is grounded with love feels better about themselves. Such a person has less anger. They deal with reality more realistically because they see reality more clearly. If one has anger it is important to not act giving in to the anger.
Actions made during times of anger are self-destructive and to be regretted. Removing oneself from the situation can avoid a lot of misery both to oneself and to others. Anger is a cancer to oneself and to society. Once one has anger it is important to not give into it and act irrationally, irresponsibly, immorally, and ineffectually. As for the nature of anger: I have the idea that it is pain that is internal which is triggered. These people don't have the capacity in making me mad. It is unsolved issues. Problem is I can never get a handle on the issues, they are too deeply rooted.
Also when I get angry, depressed, guilt etc., I say, "It is a lie. These are distortions. It is at best an illusion." Now of course there are real world issues which are deplorable. But the emotions instilled in me, or at least the underlying thoughts happen being distorted. They are mixed in with half-truths. Emotions can and do fool us and our senses. They are not to be believed. With anger comes intolerance and half the battle is lost. However, with correct reflection, sifting out the distortions in reason and logic that afflict us all, we may begin to understand one another.
Anger is a bane to human existence. I know we had need of it in prehistoric days. Everything in balance, okay we have anger. There must be a reason. It can, and does help us to correct societal wrongs. When does it get out of hand? When we cross the line and do evil. When do we know have perpetrated evil? When we take away the rights of people or life. Anger is a human condition. However you be the chariot controlled charioteer and do so utilize anger in some constructive way, shape plus manner for effect of change.
Do not ever let the anger in a metaphor: 'horse team' direct your energies like that man I had need of a block. For he is controlled and does have no direction except destructive. For the anger is consuming the heart and his very inner mind and soul. Thus he's possessed, out of the mindful state. He is as a possessed lost one. He will not admit this to himself but spew out poison and blame all except look into a mirror of realism to become aware.
In the Middle East the Israelis and Muslims in the area have (generalization) a deep rooted hatred and anger that is forestalling progress. They have let anger get in the way of reasoning. Somehow they have to get unstuck. This will require much work, and generations born into looking at things in a new light. There happen being multiple anger skills which are possible. One, a cognitive oriented view is to be aware, much like the mindfulness of Buddhism. Sometimes the body becomes triggered, this i call temporary psychosis, one acts with no reason.
Emotion can quite frankly trump reason. Two ways of avoiding this will be not letting it escalate. STOP, do not allow your hurt ego to determine the behavior which is pursued. As a metaphor i do picture the satan as puppet master. He is laughing on our own invoked folly. There are skill sets being learned which will and must establish themselves into the young child's early life. This happens being learning communication, emotional intelligence and of most importance cognitive oriented thinking, and using the proverbial critical thinking of which is our heritage.
How I cope is say, "Okay, either problem solve or refocus on what I can do to take back a measure of control". Do what I can do and not necessarily what I wish to do. I have a whole host of coping mechanisms. I tell you those brain chemicals are very powerful indeed. When and if I become triggered I try riding the storm of emotion out. It is, "And this too shall pass". Maybe, tomorrow I will have a more pleasant day. It is rolling with the punches. I always am hoping always for the best.
If you can not cannot yourself then remove yourself from the public sphere. Take a chill pill, time out, or walk away rather than pour the litter of your anger unto the heads of your fellow beings. Making the mistake of giving in to anger to protect one's ego is like blowing on the embers of a fire. You in effect pour gasoline on the fires of your passion and it engulfs you. Anger is alike psychosis of the spirit. As such it is a poison to one's inner harmony and peace. No one can make you angry but yourself and the distorted thoughts
which are the illusions of your cognitive distortion in thought which stem from unfinished business of your own unhealed self. As such they are blind spots of one's awareness. Correct the distortions of thought in reasoning and instead walk upon the middle path. One of reason balanced with reason and Agape compassion.
Cognitive therapy and rational emotive therapy
(1) There is an external event and there is a negative emotion.
(2) The cause of the emotional turmoil is not so much the event as our distorted perception of it.
(3) We identify the distortion.
(4) We replace it with a more realistic thought. Our emotional discomfort eases.
(5) We take realistic action.
The above is almost a mantra of the cognitive approach. There is a chemical component, which is not addressed. There are chemical neurotransmitters in the brain. There is ACh or Acetylcholine and Norepinephrine: which are generally excitatory. Dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins are inhibitory. If there is a chemical imbalance in these areas then generally medication is warranted. I've often said it takes two people to have an argument. While one is beating their head senselessly on the North wall the other is senselessly beating their head on the South wall. Both are repeating over and over the same thing without listening to the other person.
In communication state your position, maintain boundaries and remove yourself from the situation if the person is argumentative. To be offended is a sign of your false ego being triggered. Rise above for it is an illusion. The other person define themselves from their irrational stand and you are accountable for what you say and how you act. Take the high road or be fooled by illusion and feeling your false ego being wounded.