Calm Your Anger With These Simple Tricks
The World We Live In
Americans are angry. Traffic jams, soaring gas prices and a crappy economy are just a few of the things that get our blood boiling. Calling customer service these days is a nightmare. Remember the good ol' days when you would call a company and a person would pick up the phone? Now you have to dial up all the prompts yourself, sit on hold just to talk to someone in a foreign country who can't understand you.
Once a Democrat and Republican could sit at a table and have a healthy discussion. Today the rhetoric from politicians is hateful, used to press buttons and turn people against one another. The internet has also been used by bullies as a means to torment others. Internet trolls spend their days online intentionally upsetting people. All this including the personal problems you may have, it's no wonder so many of us our medicated.
Anger is a normal emotion that happens to us when we are in danger. It's our natural fight / flight response. Anger can be healthy when we use it to be productive. However, many times the anger in us builds up and we don't really know why we are angry. There are some techniques you can use that can help you calm down, sort your emotions out and find out what is really bothering you.
When You Are Already Angry
Breathe deeply. Take a few deep breaths. Slowly inhale and exhale. You will feel your body and mind relax.
Count backwards from ten. Slowly count backwards from ten to one. Once you get to one, you will feel calmer.
Look Up. I don't know why, but this works. Usually when you are angry, you are looking down. Looking up distracts you and helps you gain your composure.
Walk Away. Remove yourself from the place you are in. Just a change of scenery will clear our heads and help us forget what was getting us so fumed.
Write your feelings down. Get the anger out by using a pen and paper. It is a great release and more effective than throwing something or punching someone. Less dangerous too.
Prevention
If you are prone to outbursts of anger, there is always an underlying reason. Are you really that angry at your friend who wasn't paying attention to you when you were expressing your feelings? Maybe the fact that your friend was ignoring you reminds you of something else. Perhaps you feel like nobody pays much attention to you or takes you seriously. Journaling can help you find out what's the cause of your anger. Once you know what is really bothering you, you can work on fixing that problem in your life.
Meditation is not just for Buddhists and people into New Age. Meditation has been used for thousands of years to calm the mind. Try sitting in a quiet room and relax. You only need about five to ten minutes a day.
Take a walk every day. Even if its just a quick ten or fifteen minute walk. Absorb the world around you, the trees, the birds and the people who walk by. After a nice walk you will feel light and your spirits lifted.
Conclusion
Anger can make us feel strong and powerful. That feeling is an illusion. When angry you are actually powerless because your anger has taken over. Constant anger will do nothing but make us sick. I hope these tips can help you come to terms with what is bothering you. Life is short and best spent happy and worry-free.
