Who needs anger management?

Emotions can be hard to control at times, specifically anger. When feeling anger, it can be so overwhelming to the mind and the body. The body releases adrenaline when feeling angry. The adrenaline triggers the muscles to tighten, blood pressure to increase as well as heart rate. Anger can trigger the fight response in “Fight – or – Flight,” making it harder to use reasoning and logical thinking. When anger starts to affect daily life functioning regularly, then anger management skills will be beneficial.

SIGNS OF ANGER MANAGEMENT ISSUES

There are certain patterns of behavior a person exhibits that show concern for anger control difficulties. 

• Alcohol/Substances: When a person becomes angry and incredibly violent when consuming alcohol or illegal substances, that is a red flag. The effects that alcohol and substances have on the brain have caused people to become more aggressive. 
• Frequency: A person feels angry, or more often than not, anger management is a serious concern. Being in a constant state of increased adrenaline is physically and emotionally unhealthy, and it keeps the person in fight mode. 
• Blaming: The inability to accept responsibility for one’s own behavior and constantly blaming others for everything is a common sign of an anger problem. Anger makes it harder to interpret information or read a situation accurately.
• Controlling: If someone hurts a person and the solution is to ignore, give the silent treatment, or isolate the person, anger is being used to control another. Another sign is that loved ones fear the person, especially when they are angry. 
• Violence: Any violence is a sign of anger management problems. Fighting escalated arguments and even threats of violence constitute problems with controlling anger. 

MODERATION

All emotions can take a toll and become problematic when we feel them in excess. The key is expressing and feeling emotions in moderation, anger in particular. Anger is not a bad emotion; however, it can lead to many problems if not managed properly. The inability to control oneself when feeling anger can lead to more trouble than the lack of control of all emotions combined. Anytime you feel angry more than any other emotion or think that anger is controlling you and causing regret, it is time to get anger management help.