Most of us experience anger. It is natural and common to get angry. Anger is neither good nor bad. It is universal and most of us experience it. We feel angry when someone hurts or threatens us. We can also get angry over some kind of loss. If in response to the feeling of anger, you act violently, then there is a problem. There are many healthy ways of dealing with anger. In this article, we explore anger management activities for adults.

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Anger management refers to ways in which one can handle anger in healthy ways. It is necessary so that the person who keeps throwing fits of rage does not harm themself or others. Anger also affects the physical and mental health of a person. It affects their work, relationships, and career. Let us look at ways in which anger can affect our lives:

• Physical health: High levels of anger can make you prone to heart diseases. When you are angry, your blood pressure rises and the body releases certain hormones which can affect your heart.
• Mental health: When you are always angry, you cannot think of anything else. Your judgment is clouded and your emotional state is always aroused. You cannot relax in life.
• Work: Your colleagues may not like you for your outbursts. People do not want to follow an angry leader. They may find it difficult to enjoy working with you. People may find it difficult to approach you.
• Relationships: People often target their loved ones when they are angry. This can lead to lasting damage to close relationships. Although our loved ones tend to forgive us, it can leave them feeling hurt. This can create a cycle of anger. Even our friends can leave us if we throw tantrums at them.

Considering the impact anger can have on a person’s life, it is important to learn anger management activities which can come in handy for adults. Adults frequently suffer from anger outbursts. Especially in an era that is so fast-paced.

There are several healthy ways in which we can vent our anger. Having control over our anger allows us to act in a mature way. Moreover, it helps us think rationally.

In anger management activities, people don’t have to suppress their emotions. Rather they are taught healthy ways of expressing it. Here, the person learns how to send the message across in a way that does not harm anyone. Mastering anger involves ways in which you feel better after having conveyed your message. You are assertive in stating your needs as well. It also strengthens your relationship with the person who may have wronged you.

Suppressing anger is just like bottling up. One day the bottle will explode if there is a lot of pressure. When we learn how to manage anger, we practice how to slowly release the pressure to let go. Therefore below activities can help us understand how we can manage the ’emotion’ called anger, without any explosion (violent behavior).

Slowly, you can relax. Try breathing in from your nose and breathe out from your mouth. This will take practice but it is the easiest activity to do. Additionally, you can also count backward, slowly. This reduces fast breathing. One activity that can be done is:

1. Place one hand on your belly and another one on your chest or diaphragm. Place it lightly.
2. Breath in through your nose and notice the rising and falling of your chest. Try drawing breaths from your belly and notice the rise and fall of it.
3. Repeat this a couple of times. Breathe as slowly and as deeply as you can.

Pause and Relax!

One helpful anger management activity during an anger outburst is to shake it off. Stop whatever you are doing for a few minutes. Shake your arms a little. You will notice that anger brings a lot of muscle tension to your body. You may want to try muscle relaxation. Starting from your toes, go upwards till your head or vice versa. These techniques can help you focus on different muscle groups in your body. This also buys you time to relax. Remember, the aim is to get past the tip of the wave without crashing violently. These techniques take time to master. Therefore one can try them even when they are not angry.

Imagery

If you know that you have anger outbursts, you can practice visualizing calmness. Think of a calm place. Visualize the nuances of that place such as the sound in that room, the colors of that place, and how you feel in that place. There are multiple applications available that help you with guided imagery.

Healthy Venting

There are many healthy ways of venting out your anger for adults. If you find the above techniques slow and difficult to achieve, you can try sports and games. Outdoor games are an excellent activity to vent out anger. However one should keep in mind that the anger is not taken out on teammates. Some amount of arousal is necessary for any game. Exercise can also be a powerful activity for anger management for adults. This can also help you clear out clouded thoughts.

Assertiveness Training- Role Plays

If you have been feeling angry because of someone else’s actions, you may benefit from practicing assertiveness. Here an individual communicates that they have been hurt by the actions of another person. The goal here is to avoid any kind of destructive behavior. Assertiveness training involves conveying feelings to the other person in an appropriate manner.

Here we also try to reduce extreme thinking. When you are angry, you often tend to think in terms of black and white. We engage in perspective-taking. We reduce negative thinking and understand the reasons why the person may have hurt us. The aim is to politely yet assertively let the other person know how their actions have impacted us.

Walking Away

Another useful anger management activity for adults is to walk away if things get to heated. Adults can quickly fight over smaller issues and at times both parties can get heated up. The best way to control such heated situations is to walk away, cool down, come back and resolve.

Distract Yourselves

Adults often find themselves in places where they get angry. At the workplace, in a restaurant, or even in public transport. They already have a lot to deal with in their lives. Getting angry is often a facade for other deeper emotions. In such situations where anger is inevitable, you can distract yourselves with funny videos or by speaking to someone you trust. This way you can ignore momentary instances of anger.

Anger is a healthy emotion. Above mentioned anger management activities for adults take time and practice. To master anger, it is very important to learn how to recognize anger when it comes. At Epsychonline, some courses help to manage emotions such as anger. These courses are curated by experts. Do check them out.