EXPERIENCING ISSUES WITH
Anger?
Anger is a normal and healthy emotion that everyone experiences from time to time; however, when anger is excessive or uncontrollable, it can lead to problems in relationships, work, and school.
Need immediate help?
If you or someone you know is in danger of hurting themselves or someone else — or if there’s any type of health emergency — please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
How anger might show up
Anger is a natural response to feeling threatened, frustrated, or hurt. It is a secondary emotion, meaning that it is often triggered by another emotion, such as sadness, fear, or shame. When we experience a primary emotion, our bodies release hormones that prepare us to react. If we are unable to express or process the primary emotion in a healthy way, it can turn into anger expressed in ways we see every day: yelling, insulting other people, sulking and withdrawing, or becoming physically aggressive and violent.
Anger can be caused by a variety of factors, including:
- Stress
- Frustration
- Feeling threatened
- Feeling hurt
- Feeling disrespected
- Feeling powerless
Need immediate help?
If you or someone you know is in danger of hurting themselves or someone else — or if there’s any type of health emergency — please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
There are healthy ways to cope or express anger that can be identified through therapy and as part of other Rosecrance residential and outpatient treatment options related to mental health and substance use treatment. Those include talking to someone you trust about how you feel, exercising, taking a break, and using relaxation and mindfulness techniques.
Frequently asked questions about anger
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It is important to recognize the common signs and symptoms of anger, if they’re happening frequently, and your individual anger triggers. Learning these can help you intervene and ask for or get help before anger escalates.
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Learning how to communicate assertively and set boundaries can be helpful when experiencing someone else’s anger. Individual, group, couples, and family therapy can also help you navigate anger issues of your own or with a loved one.
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While anger is not an official mental health diagnosis, it can be a symptom of several conditions that fall into the categories of disruptive, impulse-control, and conduct disorders, bipolar and related disorders, depressive disorders, and personality disorders. Those include oppositional defiant disorder, bipolar disorder, intermittent explosive disorder, disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, and borderline personality disorder.