How To Release Anger In A Healthy And Appropriate Way: 4 Tips

Anger is a psychological state that, although it is usually seen as something negative, is completely natural. Over the course of a lifetime, we will experience it several times, and that is not in itself a bad thing. The key when assessing whether our relationship with anger is healthy or not is to see to what extent it affects us, and if it significantly harms us or the people around us.

Knowing how to release anger in a healthy way is one of the most important factors when it comes to not letting this emotion dominate us and make us fall into destructive or self-destructive dynamics.

Release anger in a controlled and healthy way: 6 tips

For a long time, we have fallen into a fundamental error when it comes to understanding what anger is. This trap consists of believing that this emotion is bad because it makes us have a hard time and can lead us to attack others. Where is the problem with this vision of things? In which anger does not appear spontaneously inside one: arises as a consequence of an interaction between individual and environment.

Let’s think for a moment about the social minorities that long ago were legally discriminated against and now are no longer. In that cruel past, the frustration and helplessness of feeling with fewer rights frequently generated anger, and no one would think that what was problematic about the situation was that feeling, but rather the social context.

Something similar happens when it comes to understanding why it is good to release anger in a controlled way. When we do this, we are not atoning for any sin, but actively acting to vent an emotion which may or may not be justified, but it is natural and ultimately it has not appeared because we have freely decided so. Taking all of the above into account, let’s look at some basic tips on how to release anger.

1. Avoid bustling or stressful places and find a quiet place

This first step is to avoid greater evils, since in environments with many stimuli, it is easy to find even more reasons to be angry. To this we must add that with anger running through our body we tend to be more likely to see reasons to get angry in events or situations that in another situation would not make us feel that hostility. This is a bias that can lead us to worsening the problem.

So, it never hurts keep in mind quiet places where you can be alone especially in anticipation of a dialogue that may infuriate us.

2. Place pauses in discussions

Knowing how to manage an argument also includes the ability to know how to release anger appropriately if this emotion appears. When we are immersed in a dialogue, however, this task includes both the release of a certain amount of anger (it cannot be much, since the purpose of the dialogue is different) as preventing it from continuing to accumulate. To do this, you can do two things: avoid raising the tone of your voice, and make your speech somewhat slow.

The first may be counterintuitive, since shouting is usually associated with the release of discomfort, but in the context of a dialogue this is not the case, since shouting would only make us assimilate that we are already in a verbal fight, making the other person react the same.

Speaking a little slower serves a similar function, giving us an excuse to monitor our speaking rate, preventing us from trying to overwhelm the other and dominate the conversation in this way. If you let time pass and the reasons to feel angry do not increase, this anger that was beginning to be a problem will fade away on its own without causing significant problems, as it has not reached a critical point and, on the other hand, has turned the dialogue into an battle.

3. Do sports

If you have time and it is not a very intense feeling of anger that suddenly appeared, but rather you have been feeling it for several minutes, consider the possibility of expanding that state of alert and tension into something productive. For example, in playing sports. Sport presents us with the need to release energy in pursuit of an objective It is very clear that it requires our full attention, which is why it is an excellent way to let anger go away on its own.

If you feel a lot of anger, perhaps a competitive sport is not the best option. In this case, focus on exercises performed individually, such as doing push-ups, running in the park, etc.

4. Are there any problems with video games?

Since practically their inception, video games have been unfairly criminalized, being accused of promoting violence. Paradoxically, this is not only not true, but it has been seen that in certain cases, playing this form of entertainment can be a way of channel anger without harming anyone. Immersing yourself in a fantasy world and meeting objectives allows us to release energy in a controlled environment.