Red is the primary color associated with triggering anger, hostility, and aggression. It is a high-arousal color that increases heart rate and adrenaline, often leading to feelings of rage or intense, confrontational energy. Additionally, in some contexts, intense shades of yellow can be perceived as irritating or agitating.
Here, participants assigned “red” most often to anger, “green” to jealousy, and “yellow” to happy, and “blue” to sad (Sutton and Altarriba, 2016).
Thus, the results indicated that red is positively associated with aggressiveness, because the aggressiveness-related words presented in red were categorized more quickly than in blue.
When your temper flares, put relaxation skills to work. Practice deep-breathing exercises, imagine a relaxing scene, or repeat a calming word or phrase, such as "Take it easy." You might also listen to music, write in a journal or do a few yoga poses — whatever it takes to encourage relaxation.
Red as the color of Rage, Anger, and Aggression in art.
The Colour of Revenge (German: Die Farbe der Rache; formerly known under the working title Ink and Mirrors) is a book written by Cornelia Funke. It will be published as a physical book, but may potentially be distributed in audio form. It will also tie in to Funke's MirrorWorld series.
Red is a color deeply rooted in the human psyche, and connected to the most powerful emotions, love and hate. This gallery is to display the contrasting feelings this single color can produce.
ADHD rage, or emotional dysregulation, looks like sudden, intense outbursts (meltdowns or shutdowns) disproportionate to the trigger, manifesting as yelling, throwing things, intense crying, physical tension (clenching fists/jaw, stomping), or total withdrawal, stemming from the brain's difficulty regulating emotions, making small frustrations feel overwhelming and leading to "volcanic" reactions that seem to come from nowhere.
The 3 R's of anger management offer a simple framework: Recognize your anger's early signs and triggers, Reduce its intensity with calming techniques like deep breathing, and Respond/Redirect/Resolve by taking a break to rethink the situation or channel energy productively (exercise, problem-solving) rather than reacting impulsively. Some variations use Regulate, Relate, Reason, focusing on calming the body, connecting, then problem-solving.
Commonly prescribed antidepressants for anger issues
Research shows that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) might be an effective anger medication for some people. Some commonly prescribed SSRIs for rage or anger include: Citalopram (Celexa) Fluoxetine (Prozac)
People can be made to see reddish green and yellowish blue—colors forbidden by theories of color perception. These and other hallucinations provide a window into the phenomenon of visual opponency.
Avoiding colors that can induce anxiety is a good start. Stay away from bright, bold, and intense colors. Colors like red and orange increase anxiety and stress, sometimes even fear. Red and orange are associated with an emergency that can elicit images of emergency vehicles with their lights and sirens on.
In other cultures, yellow is the primary color of envy, jealousy, and stinginess and other egotistical behaviors, with green, especially bile green (a sickly yellow-green) taking second place.
Although black is a potent symbol of dread, it's not the only color associated with fear. Red, known for representing danger and passion, is often paired with black to intensify feelings of alarm or menace. This combination—seen in caution signs, warning lights, and horror-themed branding—triggers heightened alertness.
TIL there is an "official" unicode anger symbol. It's 💢 which represents veins on your forehead when your blood pressure rises. : r/todayilearned.
This is a form of anger in which anger may not be explicitly expressed but is nonetheless showing up. Quiet anger is often adopted as a reactionary style by people who recognize the harmful impact of the more visible aggressive in-your-face anger, ostensibly to avoid causing relationship and other kinds of problems.
The final stage of anger is rage or fury. It is an intense and often overwhelming emotional state. Physical symptoms, such as increased heart rate and adrenaline rush, are common. There is a high risk of destructive behaviour at this stage, including physical aggression or verbal outbursts.
Here's some things you can try:
Irritability (angry, touchy, temper outbursts) and oppositional behavior are common in ADHD-C and in autism. In a pediatric clinical sample, aggression (physical, verbal, or relational) was significantly associated with irritability.
The 24-hour rule for ADHD is a self-regulation strategy to combat impulsivity by creating a mandatory waiting period (often a full day) before reacting to emotionally charged situations or making significant decisions, allowing time for reflection and reducing regretful snap judgments, especially for things like impulse purchases or arguments. It's a pause button that gives the brain space to process, move from impulse to intention, and evaluate choices more logically, helping manage ADHD's impact on emotional regulation and decision-making.
For many people, the meltdown may come in the form of sudden extreme emotions. This may feel like you are physically exploding from the inside with nowhere to place your feelings. The result is usually a physical outburst of some kind, such as sobbing, yelling, lashing out, or even self-harm.
Black heart means I hate you.
Green. Green, particularly its softer shades, represents harmony, growth, and balance. Green is associated with a nurturing and understanding nature, elements core to empathy.
Finally, violet represents loathing, disgust, and boredom. Plutchik's model presents the liaisons between emotions using colors.