Anger management

Two nights ago in Mongolia I was teaching about emotional hygiene emphasizing anger management. These words are on the tip of my tongue, so I’ll write a few down. The key to anger management is early recognition. The tool is mindfulness, turning inward in the present moment and discovering our current thoughts and feelings. Get familiar with your early signs of anger – feeling irritated, frustrated, change in breathing, fast heart rate, sweating, feeling hot, and maybe jittery. Then pay attention to your inner world. When any of these arise, tell yourself, “I may be getting angry.” Then apply an antidote. Imagine these early anger signs change into a cloud, that drifts across the sky and completely dissolves along with your early anger. It will not work the first time, so be persistent and keep trying. Eventually it will lessen and eliminate your anger.