Where anger is stored in the body

Anger is a normal protective response to social, emotional, or physical threats in our environment.  For instance, if someone attacks your character, you may respond with anger to defend yourself and disconnect from that person.  It’s constructed to be an adaptive emotion that comes with many significant bodily sensations and reactions.

When anger is triggered, it sends a reaction throughout the whole body to gear it up for a fight.  Adrenaline, a hormone produced to prepare us for fighting, rushes through your bloodstream, increasing your heart rate and tempo of breathing.  The hormone then flows to your muscles and extremities to be used as fuel to physically conquer the threat, regardless of whether or not that threat is actually physical.  This is why we typically see people respond to anger with aggression, yelling, violence, etc.

Though anger is an expected reaction to any real or perceived threat and can be useful in many situations, the impact of too much anger can be significant.  Excessive, unresolved, or trapped anger can trigger high blood pressure, headaches, migraines, chest tightness, an increase in anxious or depressive symptoms, physical exhaustion, etc.  This internal imbalance can then alter the way systems work in the body, creating more issues or damage.  Think about it this way—if a car is constantly running on overdrive, the consequences of that will be targeted toward the machinery and “organs” of the vehicle (i.e., engine, transmission, fuel pump, etc.).  You’re also likely to run out of gas much more quickly!

Even though anger is a difficult emotion to manage, there are many ways to deal effectively to prevent short and long-term issues from arising.  Working through some of the underlying reasons it exists, to begin with, may also be necessary, as anger is generally a secondary emotion brought up by fear, feelings of powerlessness, stress, betrayal, sadness, guilt, grief, and other emotions in the realm of human experience.  Additionally, having outlets for anger can be important for discharging the energy it brings.

It’s also worth recognizing that anger can help us do things we need to do in our lives—set boundaries, let other people know they’ve hurt us, or practice assertiveness when needed.  It can be a part of maintaining healthy relationships in our lives in small doses, as long as our reactions are intentional and thought-out. 

As intense as anger can be, we have all the power to learn how to take control back!