If you find that your own feelings of anger are often the root cause of your stress, examine your thoughts that are making you feel angry. When confronted with a potentially anger-provoking situation, you can either say things to yourself that make you angry or say things to yourself that reduce or even eliminate any anger that may have been triggered.
By consciously and explicitly talking to yourself, you have a powerful tool that can help you regulate your anger. Here are some useful examples of anger-reducing self-talk. Choose the ones that best fit your situation and try coming up with some of your own.
Is this really worth getting so angry about?
My getting angry is not going to help anything.
People can look at things differently than I do. They always have, and they always will.
Don’t take this personally.
Let it go. It’s not worth the emotional effort.
I really don’t have to feel angry about this if I choose not to.
Relax. Take a deep breath. Hold it. And let it all out.
Other people have different priorities.
Just because someone says something, that doesn’t make it true.
How would Mr. or Ms. Mental Health handle this?
Stay calm, stay cool.
Don’t go for the bait.
People have the right to be wrong. And often they are.
Don’t judge the person. Judge the behavior.
Will I remember this in three years? Three months? Three hours?