By Luis R. Orozco, LCSW –

How many times have you heard someone say “don’t get angry”, “anger is bad”, or my favorite, “anger is wasted energy”?  Many people believe that anger is a negative emotion which causes human beings to do horrible things.  Anger is not negative or positive.  It’s just an emotion whose purpose is to inform us about ourselves and our environment, and can increase our chance of survival.

However, what can be negative or positive is how we interpret the anger and the behavior produced by this emotion.  In order to have a better understanding of this concept we have to look further.  It helps to look at the human bodies’ response to emotions, and the body signals produced.  Let’s explore some of the physiology and human behavior behind anger.

In the old days, many people believed that anger and other emotions (i.e. sadness and jealousy) were caused by demons or evil spirits.  However, science has given us a new perspective.  Many scientists now agree that emotions (such as anger) act as motivators.  They give human beings the drive to engage in action.

Let me give you an example.   Think about a mother who cares for, feeds and provides all the essentials needed for her baby.  She does this without any expectations other than her own satisfaction of caring for her baby.  If you would ask this mother why she was caring for her baby, “is someone going to pay you?”  She will merely tell you that she is doing it because she loves her child.  From the scientific perspective, she is completely correct.  Love is the motivator, which is causing her to act on behalf of her child, increasing the child’s chances of survival.

Now let’s use the same example of the mother and her baby, but now let’s change the scenario.  Picture the mother walking with her baby in the park.  And out of the blue, a stranger approaches them and acts in such way that the mother perceives danger for both her and her baby.  I can assure you that in this scenario the mother is going to have a mixture of emotions and one of them will be anger.  These emotions will cause the mother to do something about this situation, whether it is to scream for help, run with her baby, or fight back.  Each reaction would increase both her and her baby’s chances of survival.

These are illustrations of how emotions act as motivators.  Now let’s look at how the human body responds to anger.

When an individual is angry, many things happen in the individual’s body externally and internally.  The external expression of anger can be found in facial expressions, body language, and at times, in public acts of aggression.  For example, the face becomes flushed, the eyebrows move inward and downward fixing a hard stare on the target, the nostrils flare, the jaw clenches, and the body adopts a squared-off stance giving the impression of attack and defense.

Some of the internal body reactions to anger include increased heart rate, increased blood flow, release of glucose from energy stores, and release of hormones such as adrenaline and noradrenalin.  These reactions are part of the “fight or flight” reaction, internal and external body reactions that release accumulated energy; energy that can be used productively or negatively.

The key is to channel the energy appropriately.  Now you might be asking yourself, how can I channel the energy productively?  Well, the first step is to recognize your body’s signals.  Our body is constantly talking to us.  Giving us signals of what is going on internally and externally.

For instance, when the body becomes significantly warm and achy (symptoms of fever), the body is announcing a major battle between antibodies and a viral or bacterial infection.  These signals (AKA symptoms) give us a warning that something potentially dangerous is happening inside our body, thus allowing us to do something about it (e.g. going to the doctor, resting, drinking fluids and/or taking medication) before getting worse.

Well, emotions, such as anger, do the same thing.  It forces our body to give us signals that something is wrong.  It is our duty to pay attention to these signals and do something about it before things get worse.  The following are things you can do to better manage your anger:

  • Exercise
  • Listen to music
  • Journalize your thoughts and emotions
  • Draw
  • Practice deep breathing
  • Talk about your feelings with someone you trust
  • Distract yourself
  • Learn anger management strategies (from a group therapist or book)

Knowing that anger is a motivator that can increase our energy and also provide us with signals that something is wrong can help us use this emotion for good.  We can use this knowledge to stay away from trouble and to motivate us to improve our lives.  The energy from anger can be channeled creatively to help others and improve our lives.