Everyone feels angry sometimes, but it can be a difficult emotion to deal with and it can be hard to express anger in a healthy way. There may even be times when you let out your anger and feel regretful afterward.
But what if you’ve been feeling angry more often lately? What if you feel like your anger is slipping out of your control, and you’re worried that sooner or later, you’re going to say something that will deeply hurt someone you love?
There is a difference between normal levels of anger and anger that’s destructive. If you’re worried that you may have an anger management problem, these signs indicate that it might be time to seek professional help.
Susceptibility to Certain Triggers
Do you find yourself becoming extremely angry because of certain triggers? Perhaps you tend to get upset in specific places, or when you are reminded of a particular event.
If you have experienced a traumatic event, and you find yourself feeling angry in situations with recognizable patterns, your anger could be connected to the trauma you lived through. Your anger levels may feel completely unmanageable when you are exposed to these triggers.
Difficulty Expressing Emotions Calmly
Everybody goes through times when they have trouble calmly stating what they feel. Everyone can remember a time when they were overwhelmed by emotions and simply let loose. But for most people, this is a relatively rare occurrence.
However, if you find that you’re almost never able to express your emotions in a calm fashion, it may be time to talk to a therapist. You might struggle to deal with small disagreements at work or resolve conflicts with your friends. Even when you do try to stay relaxed, your anger quickly takes over, and you stop it.
This can have long-term consequences for your relationships and your career.
Tensions in Relationships
Maybe you’re suddenly finding it difficult to get through basic conversations with your friends. Or maybe you’ve realized that your family seems to walk on eggshells around you, and you don’t know how to change things. Perhaps minor disputes with your roommate that should be handled easily turn into major fights.
If your anger is putting a strain on your close relationships, there could be a much larger problem.
Outbursts Over Minor Issues
Suddenly, the smallest things will set you off. You wish that you could simply take a deep breath and respond without getting frustrated, but for some reason, it’s no longer that easy.
The slightest inconvenience makes you feel genuinely angry rather than a little irritated. Before, you would only feel that angry when something truly awful happened, but now, these emotions have practically become an everyday occurrence.
Living this way is painful for you and the people in your life, and a clear indicator of an anger issue.
Physical Reactions
If your emotions often lead to a physical reaction, it’s a tell-tale sign of an anger management issue. Maybe you end up pacing across the room whenever you get angry, or perhaps you’ve even thrown something out of frustration. Sometimes, it can even feel like anger is taking over your body.
This can get to the point where you’re almost physically uncomfortable, and you need to release the tension somehow. But this is not safe. Living with such strong anger can cause your overall quality of life to decline.
Thankfully, a therapist can help you heal
