We all feel angry sometimes; it’s human nature. Whether you’re upset because you feel that someone treated you badly or are frustrated with a particular circumstance, anger rears its ugly head in all of our lives from time to time.
The important thing is to express your anger in a healthy way, as holding anger inside and pretending it doesn’t exist can make you physically or mentally ill. Repressed anger can also build up and cause you to overreact, negatively affecting many different relationships.
Instead of holding back, vent your anger in one of these seven healthy ways.
Get active
Transform negative energy into something positive by using it to propel you to run or bike faster. You could even dance away your anger to music. When you’re done, you’re likely to feel a lot better, thanks to all of those feel-good endorphins released into your system. Not only that, exercising also helps you get into shape, making you feel better about yourself and less likely to become angry about the little things.
Confide in someone you trust
Venting your troubles to someone who is willing to listen, like a trusted friend, is often effective for calming anger. It might even help you to see the situation from a different perspective.
Turn to a favorite hobby
Participate in one of your favorite hobbies – one that demands your total attention and focus and allows you to stop focusing on whatever made you so angry. This could be anything from working in your garden to playing a musical instrument, painting a picture or spending time in a batting cage.
Take a break from the situation
You made need to get away from the situation that’s making you feel angry, at least temporarily. Going for a walk, spending time in the great outdoors, playing catch with your dog or even taking a nap can help to change your outlook.
Write
Pour out all of your feelings onto a piece of paper. Once you’ve written all you can, you may have better clarity, as reading your own thoughts allows you to reflect on the situation. Capture all of your emotions and negative energy, and then you can even tear those pages up after you’re done to further exert frustrations, as well as to symbolize moving on from them.
Take action
If you’re feeling angry because you believe something unjust has happened, there are likely positive ways to help change what has occurred. This can help you feel more in control, rather than negative and enraged. For example, you might lobby your local government, or research options for improving a bad situation.
Practice mindfulness
Engage in mindful exercise like meditation, yoga, tai chi or simple deep breathing. This can help you feel more calm and relaxed in a very short period of time. Meditation is known to trigger serotonin, that feel-good hormone that contributes to feelings of happiness and well-being, while helping the mind achieve a higher sense of awareness.
While mismanaged anger that becomes intense, out of control or overly aggressive can lead to health problems and complications in personal and professional relationships, healthy expressions of anger achieve the opposite, helping us to make positive changes to our current situation and our lives.
-The Alternative Daily
Sources:
https://psychology1.knoji.com/how-to-vent-anger-in-a-healthy-way
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/apr/08/tanya-gold-meditation
http://www.livinghealthy360.com/index.php/best-ways-to-vent-anger-2-58875
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/six-great-ways-to-vent-your-frustrations.html
http://eocinstitute.org/meditation/meditation-for-anger-how-it-can-help-you-manage-emotions
