Clean Up Your Anger

Anger is the one thing that will suck the life out of your passion and your peace of mind. There are two types of anger. The one that is expressed initially when an incident occurs and the passive-aggressive type that is bottled up. Both eventually blows up in your face and they can impact your work, relationships, your being and your peace of mind.

I identify with the passive-aggressive clan. I am very tolerating, to be honest, I can tolerate anything and everything without a reaction but when I have excessively bottled things up at some point the lid explodes and everything from years past to present come gushing out. Suddenly, I have no couth and I’ll ramble on until forever in explosive anger. Things I don’t mean to say gets mixed up with things I mean to say. My anger can be so destructive that it exerts its pressure on my interpersonal relationships and whoever is on the receiving end of that anger.

Anger that is not processed or cleaned up damages things and it doesn’t bring you anything good but resentment and ill reputation. When you are angry there is this fog that does not let you see anything clearly. My two favourite Bible verses about anger talk about the damages it brings. Proverbs 14:29 “Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly” and Psalm 37:8 says; “Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath. Fret not yourself, it tends only to evil.” In a state of anger, our thoughts are misplaced and we become irrational. The cognitive function of thinking becomes impacted and not in a good way. Unexpressed anger doesn’t only lead you to a place of explosion, it affects your health and your internal organs.

How do you then find the balance gets to the point where you can express your anger in a healthy way without summoning your wrath on the person who you deem has offended you? Filter your anger. Spend time with the emotions that the anger brings while it is present. Pay attention to what your anger is saying to you. Why are you so upset? What did this person do wrong to cause me so much anger? More often than not it leads back to self, it leads back to something you don’t like about yourself, something you are insecure about or it reminds you of another anger that you have refused to let go of.

Express your anger by journaling or writing out how you feel and the emotions you feel. Writing can be very cathartic. Take your time to process those feelings then address them (or the person you are angry with) when you are level headed. Clean up your anger, express yourself with grace and nobility.