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December 2015 | Read this issue and more at www.healthandwellnessmagazine.net |
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INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE
Mindfully Managing Anger
ANGER CAN BE A HEALTHY EMOTIONAL RESPONSE OR A SERIOUS HEALTH RISK
By John A.
Patterson MD,
MSPH, FAAFP,
Mind Body Studio
Managing anger
appropriately does not require
that we deny it, repress it or get
completely rid of it. Brief, mildto-moderate episodes of anger
and righteous indignation can be
a useful stimulus to positive and
constructive action on both the personal and societal levels. However,
severe, repeated or uncontrolled
anger can lead to serious harm to
oneself or others.
The body’s stress (“fight or
flight”) response is triggered by
anger. The fight-or-flight response
was an important evolutionary
development in our primate/human
past. It permitted our ancestors to
successfully fight off or flee from
an attacker. To prepare the body
to defend itself or escape a threat,
stress hormones such as adrenaline
and cortisol impact every organ
system in the body, leading to
increased heart rate, blood pressure,
breathing rate, muscle tension, body
temperature, perspiration and overall metabolic rate. These changes
can be helpful and even lifesaving in
an emergency but lethal if sustained
or repeatedly experienced in daily
interactions at home and work or
when angrily being with ourselves.
They can contribute to the development of hypertension, heart attack,
stroke, mood disorders and a host
of other medical conditions.
Some people are inclined toward
anger by having witnessed it in their
family.
Ayurvedic medicine explains
that people with a predominance
of pitta dosha are predisposed to
anger constitutionally. Anger can
You have options in
emotionally responding.
also be the superficial expression
of underlying emotions such as fear
and hurt, which may be more difficult to express. Whatever the origin
of anger, there are signs that suggest
you may need help to construc ]