Anger Management Therapy and Counseling
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WE CAN HELP!
We have helped thousands of clients learn to recognize signs that they're becoming angry, and take action to calm down and deal with the situation in a positive way.
Anger management doesn't try to keep you from feeling anger or holding it in. Anger is a healthy, normal emotion when you know how to express it appropriately. Anger management is about learning how to do this.
Howard Sherman, LCSW has over 30 years clinical experience helping people with anger problems. He is also trained and certified to treat court ordered domestic violence cases in both groups and individual settings.
Call (407) 330-9040 or email Appt@HowardShermanCounseling.com today to make an appointment and help control those feelings of anger and learn to express them appropriately.
Although you can learn how to control your frustrations by practicing anger management techniques on your own, the most effective approach is to take an anger management class or to see a mental health counselor.
Why try Anger Management?
Anger management helps you recognize frustrations early and resolve them in a way that helps you express your needs — and keeps you calm and in control. Coping well with anger is a learned behavior, just as behaving badly when you get frustrated is a behavior you have to unlearn. Anger management is a way of systematically recognizing what pushes your buttons and how to respond in ways that work for you instead of against you.
Everyone feels angry and says and does things he or she regrets from time to time. This is normal, and not necessarily a sign you need to seek out anger management help. However, when your anger is damaging your relationships, is making you miserable or is resulting in dangerous or violent behavior, you probably need help.
Some good indicators you need help controlling your anger include:
- Often feeling like you have to hold in your anger
- Frequent arguments with your partner, children or co-workers that escalate frustrations
- Trouble with the law
- Physical violence, such as hitting your partner or children or starting fights
- Threats of violence against people or property
- Out-of-control behavior, such as breaking things or driving recklessly
What can I do before I start?
When you start working on anger management, identify your particular triggers and the physical and emotional signs that occur as you begin to get angry. Pay attention to these, and write them down:
- Identify any stressors that commonly trigger or worsen your anger. Examples include frustration with a child or partner, financial stress, or issues with a co-worker.
- Pay attention to physical signs that your feelings of anger are rising, for example, clenching your fists or your jaw or driving too fast.
- Take note of emotional signs your anger's on the rise, such as the feeling you want to yell at someone or that you're holding in what you really want to say.
What happens?
Anger management classes or therapy for anger management (also called psychotherapy) can be done one-on-one, with your partner, child or other family members, or in a group setting. You may need to attend a number of classes or counseling sessions over a period of weeks up to a few months.
- Generally, counseling for anger management focuses on learning specific skills and ways of thinking to cope with anger.
- If you have any other mental health conditions, such as depression or addiction, you may need to work on these other issues for anger management techniques to be effective.
The aim of counseling and anger management classes is to teach you to:
- Identify situations that are likely to set you off and respond in nonaggressive ways before you get mad
- Use specific skills to use in situations likely to trigger your anger,
- Recognize when you aren't thinking logically about a situation, and correct your thinking
- Calm yourself down when you begin to feel upset
- Express your feelings and needs assertively (but not aggressively) in situations that make you feel angry
- Focus on problem solving in frustrating situations — instead of using energy to be angry, focus on resolving the situation