Anger management

Can hypnosis help with anger management? Most people experience an array of emotions over the course of a day, and in many cases, they are able to express those feelings in an appropriate way.

However, there are some that find it difficult to do this, especially with anger. They may think that it’s not acceptable to feel anger at all, and try to hide it or ‘bottle it up’. Or they may lack the skills to express it in a way that’s socially acceptable.

Anger outbursts

Before we go on, let’s get that ‘anger is unacceptable’ idea out of the way. Anger can be a perfectly valid response:

• when we are treated unfairly or see others being treated in that way,
• when we feel frustrated or powerless,
• when people do things we perceive as wrong, especially if there doesn’t seem to be a consequence,
• when we think we are being attacked or ignored.

Anger is a perfectly reasonable thing to feel in these circumstances. It’s not the anger itself that’s the problem, though, it’s what we do with it. If we allow our anger to control us, the social, professional, and emotional price can be very high. When we lash out and hurt ourselves or others, anger affects our relationships with friends, workmates and family. It can even affect our ability to keep a job and get us in trouble with the law.

What is anger?

You have probably come across the ‘fight or flight’ syndrome, also called ‘the stress response’. Anger is the ‘fight’ part of that and with rage comes an increase in blood pressure, pulse rate and adrenaline production.

Stress, anxiety, and depressive disorders are often connected with anger, either as a symptom or an underlying cause.

Anger symptoms

Anger varies from general irritability to violent reactions over minor situations. Road rage would be one example of this. But it can damage relationships, affect your work and, in extreme cases, get you in trouble with the law.

Anger management

There are ways to combat these problems effectively and many people find hypnotherapy useful.

When I’m working with someone who wants to change the way they deal with anger, I tend to concentrate on finding and dealing with the underlying beliefs that are triggering the anger in the first place. This helps them to create new thought processes and patterns of behaviour.

Hypnotherapy can also help you feel generally calmer and more relaxed, which can mean you are less sensitive to the things that used to trigger off your anger, helping to prevent problems as well as solve them. Anger management often includes some stress management as well.

By coping with the symptoms of anger in new ways and dealing with the underlying cause you can make a considerable difference in your life. Of course, as always therapy isn’t a magic wand, and the final results will be down to you, but if you think I may be able to help you, please get in touch.