New blog post written by ~ Cassie ~ The Volcano Within. Anger and rage is a taboo subject, many people feel uncomfortable talking about it as they do not want to be perceived as an abusive or violent person . However this is a subject that I would like to shine the light on as many people suffer with anger and or rage, aggressive or passive aggressive behaviour with or without a mental health illness, for example the person who has road rage, who is short tempered etc etc. If your anger or rage is negatively impacting your life and or anothers you may find this article of some interest. Today I will be discussing my experiences and how I learnt to cope with it. which has proven to be successfull. I have bipolar disorder so I will add that when I used to be manic or in a mixed episode (it is kinda like agitated depression for those who may not know what a mixed episode is) I found it very very difficult to control, this is where I had to use my coping techniques alongside my medication as many people do so too. Also I must say that many people who suffer from anger and rage do not always take it out on others they may harm themselves instead, I too used to do this also before I learnt how to cope with it, (I have already covered self harm in another article @ globalmentalhealthawareness/blog/self-harm-awareness Before I start I must put forward the other side to this topic; If you are being affected by a loved one’s anger or rage please encourage them to seek help. However if you feel you are being abused you have to ask yourself if this relationship is healthy for you and your own well being. I too have been subject to this in the past so know first hand how awful and harmful it can be to live with. No one deserves to be abused, or has the right to abuse another person. Here are some signs that a person is feeling angry, being able to recognise these signs are crucial as once a person is aware of this it is easier to learn how to prevent it from spilling over and effecting others or yourself; 1. Your breathing may become rapid 2. You may become very tense and your body may stiffen 3. Facial expressions may change 4. You might clench your fists and or grit your teeth 5. Your voice can become louder and you may start to shout 6. You may take comments personally, become agitated and or frustrated Being able to identify how and why I may get angry helps to prevent me from exploding, My anger does not come out of no where although it may look like it to someone who does not understand, as it did to me before I became very mindful and self aware. It may take many hours and sometimes days or even weeks where this is building up with or without me realising it. This is where I have to become very mindful of my triggers, you may identify some of these as your triggers too, or you may have different triggers. Being able to identify your triggers will help. 1. Tiredness 2. Stress 3. Feelings of frustration or feeling out of control 4.Feeling intimidated 5. Being ridiculed, humiliated or people putting me down 6. Someone judging me unfairly due to arrogance or ignorance, and or/ being stigmatised 7. Not being taken seriously or able to voice my opinions due to another I keep a close eye on my mental health, my emotional well being and happiness at all times, as if this starts to suffer when I am unwell due to my mental health illness I am at risk of becoming fuelled with anger so I take measures to try and prevent this from happening. 1. I Keep to a good sleep routine.. 2. I make sure not to take on too much, to keep my stress levels down as much as I can; 3. I challenge my thoughts, if they appear to be very negative I ask myself how I can turn these negatives around by concentrating on the positives no matter how small they maybe, or checking my thoughts by asking myself am I mis-reading the situation or taking things too personally? 4. I warn my loved ones of how I am feeling as soon as I identify early warning signs, and tell them how they can help me, e.g. to not be argumentative, to not have the music on loudly or the TV too high as I become very sensitive to noise, etc. etc. 5. I try and find something which can take my mind off how I am feeling it may be something as simple as washing the floor (as doing something physical can help), or writing. I also talk myself through it too. 6. Talking can be a lot more productive than if I just brew on things that may be irritating or upsetting me 7. I practice mindfulness exercises, which you can find @ globalmentalhealthawareness/blog/improving-mental-and-physical-health-and-maintaining-stability-through-mindfulness My loved ones can help too, this is what they do: 1. Listening to how I feel rather than telling me how they think I should feel 2. They accept that I am struggling and do not put added pressure on me to do more than I am capable of doing when feeling unwell 3. They do not use phrases such as: Pull yourself together, get over it or it isnt that bad 4.They give me space and allow me to think things through calmly 5. They check their own behaviour and reactions as everyone can become angered to the situation I maybe finding difficult. 6. If I feel agitated or frustrated they leave me alone These are the things that I can do for myself and how my loved ones can help. If you are suffering from anger and/or rage, and or your anger or rage is affecting your loved ones or friends professional advice should be sought as soon as possible. With the correct treatment and understanding, it is possible to be able to control your anger.
Posted on: Fri, 04 Jul 2014 13:45:59 +0000
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