Anger is a human emotion but also a very powerful force. If you don’t manage it correctly, it could do you a lot of harm. When we’re feeling angry, it’s easy to hurt people you care about without even realizing it.
Feeling angry at times is natural. But sometimes its effects can be devastating. The good news is you can learn to overcome it if you practice. Here are some valuable tips.
A great Chinese proverb says:
“If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.”
It’s very true that we can act recklessly when something disturbs us. Anger is like a tornado or a flood that comes right at you and devours you. When you’re in the moment, your heart starts beating faster, your face turns red and then you suddenly snap. You’ve lost control over what you say or do and minutes, hours or days later you are filled with regret.
There are many reasons why we’re feeling angry at times: maybe when someone addresses us a harsh word, or when we face an injustice, when we find out someone has lied to us, or when we feel misunderstood. Sometimes fear can also manifest itself as feeling angry but it can be hard to tell which is which if you are not very in touch with your emotions.
What to Do When Feeling Angry?
We are all annoyed and angered by small things every once in a while. What matters is how we deal with this anger. Do we let it consume us and cause a mess in our lives or do we let it go? At the end of the day, it’s a matter of choice as well as practice.
First thing you need to do is understand that anger is one emotion from a whole range of human emotions. We can’t pretend it doesn’t exist or try to erase it completely. What’s more important is that we become aware of it when it shows up. We observe how it makes us feel and in that moment we choose whether to act on it or just sit and watch it as it goes away by itself.
Then you can further explore it and see why that thing that bothered you upsets you so much. If you do choose to respond, make sure it’s always without feeling angry. Take the time you need to analyze the situation and you’ll feel much better about the outcome. Focus on maintaining your calm and on coming up with a solution to the problem at hand.
And the last step you can take is to let anger teach you about yourself, your emotions, and what troubles you. Then you remember to act differently in the future.
