Anger is a natural, instinctive response to threats. Everyone feels angry sometimes, but it becomes a problem when it begins to impact a person’s daily life and causes them to react in a way that might hurt themselves or those around them. How we learn to cope with angry feelings is often influenced by our upbringing. Uncontrolled anger is bad for your physical and mental health.
Signs my anger might be a problem
- bottling things up
- having trouble expressing anger
- using alcohol or other drugs to manage
- withdrawing from people or situations
- feeling sad and distressed as a result of getting angry
- feeling the need to use aggression to get people to do something
- feeling angry a lot of the time at an intense and overwhelming level
- regretting the things you did or said when you were angry
- behaving aggressively (verbally, physically, passive aggression)
- expressing anger by saying or doing something violent (e.g., shouting, swearing, throwing or hitting things).
Anger itself isn’t considered a disorder, but it is a known symptom of several mental health conditions and can be caused by an underlying disorder. The following are some of the possible causes of anger issues.
- Depression
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
- Alcohol Abuse
- Oppositional Defiant Disorder
- Bipolar Disorder
- Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED)
- Grief
Get started with therapy at People to People today.