Lesson: Anger Management Techniques/ExerciseL1

Listening Exercise

It doesn’t take a lot to make me

. What about you? Did some schmuck cut you off on the freeway? Maybe your

accidentally shredded that birthday

your grandma sent you. So you freak out, you

, maybe, a vain pops out of your forehead. It happens to

. But, did you know that anger is actually affecting your physical health? Hey, anger is inevitable. Ok, you can't just stop getting angry, even the world's most sedate person has

a few choice words in

. Will that expletive fest really make you feel better? Will punching a wall really calm you down? The answer is NO. Sorry but recent studies have shown that angry reactions are pretty harmful to your physical health. A Yale University study

that people with anger management issues tend to get sick more often. Their anger actually

their immune system. The Journal of the National Medical Association added that people who respond negatively to anger are 9% more likely to have a heart attack. Hey, it might not sound like a lot but come on, it's a heart attack. Every

point counts. Other studies have

anger to everything from coronary disease to high blood

. Now that we all know that excessive angry outbursts are bad for you, we're going to teach you how to manage that anger in four simple steps. All you're gonna need is that handy dandy Wellcast journal, a little bit of time and a tiny bit of self awareness.

Step 1: Control your breathing.

When something pisses you off, instead of

or laying on the horn, take deep breaths. Spend two to three minutes breathing deeply, into through your nose and out through your mouth. Imagine inhaling calm blue air and exhaling that red toxic air.

Step 2: Relax your

.

Unclench your fists, make a conscious effort to

those shoulders and slump a little. Re-posture is

, but for now let those muscles unwind. I promise it'll help.

Step 3: Get it out.

Once you're relaxed and

deeply grab your Wellcast journal if it's a road rage thing

please pull over. But when you get a chance write down exactly what made you angry.

Step 4: Seeking context.

It's important to put your angry into context by thinking

instead of emotionally. Think about it. Are you gonna be angry tomorrow? Yeah, probably. What about a week from now? Hmm, maybe. A month? Probably not. A year? I don’t think you'll remember, but by examining your angrer this way you can

yourself from it and you'll be able to process your anger without letting it

over your life.

Let's recap! You need to find a

way to process your anger or else you could run into some really nasty health problems. Remember to relax and breath evenly and then work through your anger by writing it down and

it. We can't promise you won't get angry ever again but hopefully with this you found a way to deal with it a little bit better.