It gives us strength and energy, and motivates us to act. But for some people, anger can get out of control and cause problems with relationships, work and even the law. Long-term, unresolved anger is linked to health conditions such as high blood pressure, depression, anxiety and heart disease.
The long-term physical effects of uncontrolled anger include increased anxiety, high blood pressure and headache. Anger can be a positive and useful emotion, if it is expressed appropriately.
There are three types of anger which help shape how we react in a situation that makes us angry. These are: Passive Aggression, Open Aggression, and Assertive Anger. If you are angry, the best approach is Assertive Anger.
Anger is considered unhealthy when: Anger is unhealthy when it hurts others – Acting out of anger in ways that hurt those around you is very unhealthy. It doesn't address the anger, nor does it do anything productive. Often we hurt friends, family members, or peers because they are the source of our anger.
xi The arousal cycle of anger has five phases: trigger, escalation, crisis, recovery and depression. Understanding the cycle helps us to understand our own reactions and those of others.
Unrelenting anger can sometimes be a sign of a mental health condition. While challenges with emotional regulation can be a symptom of several conditions, Ogle indicates that anger can often relate to: anxiety disorders. depression.
Destructive Anger
It's an extremely dangerous type because, in addition to being potentially violent, destructive anger expresses itself as intense hatred, even in cases where it may not be warranted. “Destructive anger could turn into violent behavior toward another person or group.
“Anger causes a flood of adrenaline, preparing your body for danger by raising blood pressure, heart rate and breathing, and making blood more likely to clot,” said Jeremy Warner, DO, from Samaritan Cardiology – Corvallis. “This can weaken artery walls and raise the risk for heart disease.”
The words used to describe anger tend to be volcanic. And science may explain why. When an angry feeling coincides with aggressive or hostile behavior, it also activates the amygdala, an almond–shaped part of the brain associated with emotions, particularly fear, anxiety, and anger.
Anger. Many heart patients feel angry and upset about what's happened to them. But frequent or extreme anger can cause your blood pressure and heart rate to rise, and make your heart work harder. Sometimes anger also causes angina (chest pain) because vessels constrict (narrow), reducing blood and oxygen to the heart.
Feelings of anger arise due to how we interpret and react to certain situations. Everyone has their own triggers for what makes them angry, but some common ones include situations in which we feel: threatened or attacked. frustrated or powerless.
SSRIs that have been shown to help with anger include citalopram (Celexa), fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline (Zoloft), among others. Sertraline seems to have the most supporting data. Other classes of antidepressants, like serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), aren't widely used for treating anger.
Intermittent explosive disorder (IED) is a mental health condition marked by frequent impulsive anger outbursts or aggression. The episodes are out of proportion to the situation that triggered them and cause significant distress.
Another reason we get angry over small things is that we personalize everything that happens to us. So even if something has nothing to do with us, we can't help but take it personally. This can lead to feeling like we're constantly under attack, making us angry.
Anger and the Core Hurt Types
Often when we get angry about something, there is hurt behind why we are offended. There are 8 Core Hurt Feelings: disregarded, unimportant, accused, guilty, devalued, rejected, powerless, inadequate, or unlovable.
"Healthy anger" might seem like an oxymoron - after all, isn't anger a bad thing? While the misconception abounds that anger is inherently a toxic or negative emotion, that's not actually true. Anger is something that we all experience; it's the body's natural reaction when something isn't right.
Chronic anger weakens your immune system, which affects your overall health. Impaired immunity leaves you vulnerable to inflammation. Chronic inflammation is one source of illnesses such as arthritis. An immune system that is less than optimal also leaves you open to infections.