Couples Counseling or Anger Management Classes, Which Is Better?


Do Relationships Need Anger Management?
As I licensed psychotherapist, I have seen hundreds of couples in my clinical practice. As an anger management expert, I have seen equally the same number of couples come in for anger management couples coaching". While doing psychotherapy with couples does not always uncover issues related to anger, I can say with almost 100% certainty that anger reduction work always covers issues relevant to good communication, listening, empathy, and expectation management.
Why Do Couples Seek Anger Counseling?
Couples frequently come in wanting to undercover the deeper issues that haunt regarding their anger, however, I tend to see faster results by simply teaching couples effective techniques for improving the quality of their interactions. Most partners get into fights because they are experiencing needs that the other partner isn't fulfilling. It could be basic needs for affection, security, intimacy, respect, appreciation, or something else. Anger counseling covers so many skills that couples almost see immediate benefit. It could be as simple as changing the facial expressions in one's face, or expressing feelings more directly. Sometimes even slight modifications in behavior can have dramatic results.
How Can Couples Best Learn These Anger Management Skills?
Anger control management can be learned in several easy to use ways that are very practical. While I have always encouraged couples to make the time to participate together, it is also possible to gain these same skills individually or through an online program offered by a licensed professional. Quality online anger control classes are an excellent way to learn effective strategies without having to spend time away from other commitments. Online anger classes can be taken from anywhere where one has access to a computer. Even a smart phone will work!. Live anger management classes are also an option if coming in together isn't possible. Isn't your relationship worth getting help for? Don't wait until it's too late.
The Danger Zone for Couples with Anger
Relationships are most at risk for disaster when they wait till the last minute to get help. Don't wait until anger has changed the relationship to the point where you don't care any more or you simply can't stay in it any longer. Early intervention is key for relationships to succeed. Just as you wouldn't wait to see a doctor if you had heavy and powerful chest pains, don't wait until your relationship is falling apart to see help.
Ari Novick, Ph.D. is Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a certified anger management provider for both adults and adolescents. Dr. Novick is also an adjunct professor of psychology at Pepperdine University's Graduate School of Education and Psychology.

How to Get in Control of Your Anger

Posted by Ghuulam Mujtaba | Labels:


Everyone knows the feeling of being frustrated or angry. This can be about very small things like not putting back the cap on the toothpaste or your housemate is playing the music too loud. It all starts with minor issues that will build up and build up over time and finally.. you explode (also called the volcano). This is the moment when you get a burn out towards the other person and the other person you are yelling at doesn't even know what he or she did wrong. The way to get in control of your anger is to be assertive and to address your anger. But I know people are scared of conflict. They will avoid it all costs. But what happens when someone annoys you? You probably bite your tongue and say nothing which results in you being more frustrated then you were before. It will build up and build up over time until one day all this anger will come out. If you would have been assertive and addressed it, your frustrations would have been gone and it would feel as a great relieve. Another way to address your anger is to set clear boundaries. Know where your boundaries are, and say NO if people cross them. If people know that they can cross your minor boundaries they WILL cross them and will go further and further. If you do not set clear boundaries you won't be able to be in control of your anger. Having clear boundaries and enforcing those boundaries regularly, through telling people when they have crossed over those boundaries will insure that you effectively manage your anger.
Passive aggression is also an expression of anger. It is a socially excepted way how people dealing with their anger. But that doesn't mean it is less worse than the volcano. Examples of passive aggressive are: using sarcasm, avoidance and the silent treatment. People who are using the silent treatment (and that are a lot of people) doesn't want to make a scene, they remain quiet and say nothing. They expect that the other person can read their mind and know what is wrong. It can be one of the most annoying emotions not only to experience but also to project on other people.
Then there are the short term band aid solutions to cope with your anger. They are called band aid solutions because they only work for a short period of time. People will drink excessively, sport excessively, go Facebooking, gossiping, shopping all the sort of stuff to keep your mind of the problems. But these solutions won't work for the long run. It doesn't solve the real problem. That is why it is so important to be assertive and to address it. I know it is difficult to start that confronting conversation but once you've done it you realize that it helped you to get rid of those angry frustrating feelings. Just try it, you see it will work.

Anger Management Techniques for Immediate Conflict Resolution


Anger management techniques can help with immediate conflict resolution. You can usually tell when you're about to get angry. You get angry enough, and if you've been graced with the slightest bit of introspective thinking, then you'll pick up on the patterns. For some, the click over to angry bird is stark. Sometimes, it's just a word or a phrase that a wife says, and you notice that you can't let go of it. When that's the case, you have to try hard to get away from the situation. That's one of the anger management techniques that folks pick up on rather quickly. For these folks, they realize that anger is a problem, and the quickest, best solution at the moment, is to just avoid the flare-up all together.
Call this isolation technique and approach to avoiding the problem. It's not a solution; again, you're merely avoiding the problem, and not at all calling out the cause or root of the problem at hand. Now, it should be noted as well that this is a technique that really works for folks that are not predisposed to various issues involving psychiatric disorders such as bi-polar disorders of varying types, or even schizophrenia on the more extreme end of things. This really just works for folks that are generally healthy, except for a few ideological hang-ups that really send the person flying. So, back to the set of anger management techniques: when you notice that you're picking up on the pattern of getting angry, you should practice it.
You should deliberately put yourself into safer situations that you know you will be able to handle. You administer small doses of those things that you know will really send you off the deep end. But make sure (and again, we need to reiterate this): small doses. So this might involve, as a somewhat silly example of this, running away from the kitchen table, as soon as you hear something irritating uttered by your wife, your child, or whoever. It isn't the most graceful of anger management techniques, but it works to avoid the violence that might ensue should you stick around.
Of course, this only helps to bridge you over to a set of anger management techniques that you can take with you, over the long haul (and we're talking about the rest of your life here). This is a stopgap solution, if you will. So again, for some it's a stark click on, triggered by some phrase or comments made at a table or wherever. For some, though, it's a gradual process. And it builds up. In some senses, this is a little riskier a situation to deal with, because before you know (or rather, you won't realize it until it's too late), you're angry, and it's manifested itself, and all hell had broken loose already. Learning anger management techniques can help you to avoid this scenario and to not only resolve conflict, but to avoid it completely.

Anger Management in Children: 7 Tips To Help Them Cope

Posted by Ghuulam Mujtaba | Labels:


Dealing with anger is not a skill we are born with. Anger is an emotion that each one of us encounters many times in our life and it can turn ugly and hurtful very fast. Everyone deals with this powerful emotion in their own way. If we encounter an angry adult we may watch to see how they deal with the issue and we can often choose to not get involved. As parents it is important for us to realize what is going on with our children and not overlook the angry child. There are various ways to deal with a child that is angry but it is just as important to help the child learn to deal with their emotions.
The way we respond to this emotion is learned and taught at a very early age. It is important to send your child the right message about what is appropriate. It will be much easier to learn as children because even though we can change the way we deal with anger as an adult, it will be a lot of work.
It is best to teach anger management in children at a very early age. But be careful here, in order to help a child deal effectively with their anger you need to have control of your own.
It might be hard to understand why a child would be so angry that it interferes with the way he lives his life. Anger issues can be as difficult to deal with at any age and the first thing to do is get a medical opinion. Make sure there is not a medical reason for the behavior. Medical or not you will still need to deal with situations as they arise.
1. It is much easier to teach a child something by setting a good example.
2. It is important to recognize their positive qualities and reinforce their weaker ones with praise, encouragement and support while they learn to master each life skill.
3. Children cannot always relay their feelings, they might say they are mad when they are really angry or hurt. Open the door for conversation and help the child understand what they are feeling.
4. A child is not mature enough to take on the problems of adults but their issues are very important to them.
Ways To Help An Angry Child Learn Anger Management
1. Overlook the little things (once in a while) but make sure the child knows you are allowing him the opportunity to modify his behavior
2. Time outs can be a punishment to the adult as much as the child, I prefer to redirect. I find this tactic helpful for people of any age but it doesn't always work.
3. Teach a child to be empathetic by focusing on the feelings of the victim
4. Discuss the object of frustration and discuss options
5. Recognize the frustration and empathize but, reinforce the importance of self control and choices
6. Sometimes it is best to start a child thinking about the consequences the actions will have on his future. No recess tomorrow, no bike, phone etc... In order for this to work the child needs to know that he can depend on you to follow through and help them calm down.
7. Teach a child to deep breathe when he is upset. This skill will strengthen their lungs as well as help them distress.

The Offspring of Impotence

Posted by Ghuulam Mujtaba | Labels:


It is often said that an angry man shuts his eyes and opens mouth. It points to two implications of anger. One is that it temporarily blinds us by making us emotional. For a brief spell, we are under the influence of that emotion. Secondly, we become disoriented, so our ability to think, reason and act wisely is interrupted. We are likely to talk rubbish and mess up things.
Anger can play havoc on relationships, spoil great opportunities that come our way and create new problems. Above all, it causes a lot of our precious time to be wasted. If we are keen to improve ourselves in terms of our quality as human beings, one of the things that need to be given top priority is the art of anger management. There are several techniques suggested for anger management, the most common among them being number counting, though the efficacy of these methods varies from individual to individual depending upon their understanding of such methods. By counting numbers, even if we are able to get back to the senses, the problem does not end there. Since anger is a recurring phenomenon, we would do well to consider long-term remedies so that we may have fewer occasions that require us to count numbers or run to the dance floor. We can do so by attending to the roots of the problem.
It is plain common sense that anger is a by-product of inefficiency or an assumed sense of powerlessness. When we face a problem for which we are unable to find a solution or when we have to face a question for which we do not know the answer, the spontaneous human reaction is anger. We use it as form of escapism when answers elude us. So we know now what anger management must be able to accomplish. On the one hand, it should help us to identify the issues over which we feel apparently helpless. On the other, we must be able to work out feasible solutions for these issues.
A more dangerous application of anger is in psychological game play, where it is used as a platform to initiate ulterior transactions. It is necessary to immunize ourselves from that trap and it is possible only through self-awareness. Being angry or feigning anger to exercise control over others is an indication of an immature mind and such behaviour poorly reflects on one's personality. Our individual as well as collective development and prosperity are the functions of an atmosphere that is free from fear and inspired by an open mind. Anger is undesirable in both ways for it promotes fear and discourages open mind.

Anger Management Classes Teach You to Regain Control

Posted by Ghuulam Mujtaba | Labels:


Anger management classes can teach you how to stay in control. After all, we've all probably heard the advice that we should keep our mouths closed if we do not have anything nice to say. Knowing that and applying it are two different things. When we are upset, we tend to say things that we should not. We end up saying things that really are better left unsaid. On several occasions, we end up saying things to purposely hurt a person's feelings. Situations like this often lead to relationships that are damaged beyond repair. To avoid these things from happening, you should sign up for an anger management class so that you can be on your way to controlling your temper better. Both you and your family will benefit from this course of action.
Some people rationalize their actions by saying that they were just extremely emotional at the time. This is exactly the reason why attending an anger management class is necessary. Ordinarily, people who are extremely upset do not act in a manner that will cause severe damage to people that they love. If you find yourself causing pain that is beyond what the situation warrants, consider that as a sign that you need help to put your emotions under control. There is nothing wrong with feeling angry per se. We all get angry at some point. Your anger management classes will help you maintain control over what you do or say when you are in the midst of extreme emotion. Instead of screaming and shouting at people, you will learn techniques to get yourself to calm down sufficiently so that you can engage in a conversation. This is more fruitful than screaming at people. With a conversation, there is hope of resolving the issue on hand. With screaming only comes more screaming. Nothing gets resolved because no one listens. Everyone is too busy trying to get heard.
If you have ever physically hurt someone in anger, then it imperative for you to get help. It has been shown that people with violent tendencies tend to increase the level of violence that they exhibit as time passes. Before things go too far and you hurt someone really bad, get the help that you need. There are many people who have been convicted of crimes of passion. In a nutshell, these are people who committed a crime because they let their temper gain control over them. What you should aim to have the ability to do is to take control over your emotions. Never is this more important than when you are extremely angry and probe to doing harm to those around you. By continuously attending anger management classes, you will find yourself becoming equipped to deal with anger.

Unhealthy and Imprudent Anger in Child Sexual Abuse

Posted by Ghuulam Mujtaba | Labels:


For victims of child sexual abuse, anger isn't always a bad thing. There is a good and healthy expression of it that can really help someone recover from all those pain, suffering, and trauma. It is a fact that most sexual abuse victims feel or experience a certain level of anger for the duration of their lives. Since anger is just a product of emotion, there are things that can be done in order to either control it or use it to an advantage.
Nevertheless, majority of victims still use anger as a means to escape pain and put reasoning on the question of why they were chosen to be abused. For people who did not suffer from sexual exploitation, it is so easy to blame those who did suffer and ended up losing their life and future. But for the victims, it seems like being angry at oneself, to others, and to the abuser is the only way to answer all those confusion inside them.
Anger and Self-Destruction
By the time a victim feels the pain and trauma of the abuse, she starts to blame herself. Most of them would think that getting sexually abused is their fault. Anger is therefore directed to them. As soon as this happens, self-destruction in the form of addiction, inflict pain, and suicidal tendencies are common consequences. Anger in this form does not help in any way for the recovery and healing.
"It's Their Fault!"
Placing anger and blame to other people and society is another form of using this emotion in an unhealthy manner. If victims plan to heal and recover from the trauma of child sexual abuse, blaming others and hating them will just worsen the whole picture. There are many instances where survivors find themselves alone - with no one else there to help and protect them from the abuser. As a consequence, they begin to build a mentality that everyone around them including their parents, relatives, and friends betrayed them. Anger at this instance will surely ruin whatever future relationships the victims may have in the long run.
In reality though, anger is just a natural product of the mind. Once a child becomes a victim of sexual abuse, negative effects will surely surface and that includes anger and shame. Victims must look at it as something that's going to appear no matter how strong they try to fight it back. The important thing to do is try to express this emotion to their advantage. When anger is kept to oneself, it becomes destructive. When it is expressed and let others know about it, it's a way of expressing and letting it all out. The good thing about expressing anger is that victims will eventually learn to eliminate it.