Anger’s Seven Types Of Danger

By Linda Young, Ph.D.

As human beings, we have a wide range of emotions. Anger is an emotion like any other feeling. It is neither good nor bad in and of itself. The behavior that results from the feeling of anger is often what many of us see as damaging or destructive. Many individuals are afraid of their own anger, possibly because they have not been taught how to separate out the feeling of anger from the behavior that sometimes erupts from the feeling.

There has been a long-standing debate in the mental health field as to whether it is healthy to vent angry feelings. Some recent studies indicate that expressing anger in an aggressive or intimidating manner tends to escalate the irritation and frustration rather than releasing the anger and helping the individual to calm down and gain self-control. Venting anger on a consistent basis can have long-term physical and social consequences.

Following are seven social and physical dangers of venting anger: Angry individuals tend to have negative thoughts that accompany their emotions. Because of this, resolving their problems becomes more difficult. Someone who regularly vents his or her anger tends to come across as having an intimidating, even hostile personality. Approaching a person with whom you have a disagreement from an angry position generally results in the other person matching your behavior and becoming angry in return. Anger has a very negative effect on our physical health. It has been associated with stomach and intestinal problems such as ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome and ulcerative colitis. A key predictor for coronary heart disease is the Type A personality individual with chronic hostility. An anger outburst typically results in an increase in blood pressure. Individuals with ongoing high blood pressure problems are often those who chronically suppress their anger. Studies have shown that chronic suppressed anger activates the sympathetic nervous system response. This fight or flight response results in the release of stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. Over a period of time, these hormones weaken the blood vessels in the body, resulting in increased Studies risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Obviously, from a health and relationship standpoint, learning to effectively manage our anger is needed. Many outlets are available to manage our anger. One major one is learning to identify and talk through the gradual buildup of irritations before getting to the explosion point. Other resources include exercising, yoga or relaxation techniques to calm our stress response. Anger typically is an emotion signaling either stress, hurt or fear. Its our responsibility to tune into what the anger is trying to tell us and to express it in a constructive manner.

About the Author: Dr. Linda Young is a licensed marriage and family therapist in private practice in Tallahassee, Florida. She specializes in the treatment of mood disorders, addictions, grief recovery and relationship concerns. Visit her website for further articles at

mentalhealthcorner.com/articles

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