Anger Management and Counseling in Encino, CA.

Anger can be a scary emotion. It can be frightening for the person expressing it and frightening for the person receiving it. Anger is a healthy emotion when used appropriately but sometimes, a person's anger feels out of control. That is when help is needed to look at ways of controlling the anger and perhaps, why such anger exists. When a person comes to see me with issues of anger management, we look ways to improve impulse control and look at why the anger is occurring in the first place. Hopefully, the client will get some insight and understanding into his/her issues, anger management skills will be taught, and, as a result, the anger be decreased and expressed appropriately.

Anger when used appropriately can be a useful tool to give us the aggressive energy we need to take action when we are feeling helpless or victimized. Unfortunately, it is often misused and becomes abusive, creating whole new problems for relationships and careers. I work with clients to first learn to control their emotional expressions, define the underlying feelings creating the hostility, and learn new skills to better utilize their feelings to resolve conflict in more adult ways.

Sometimes unresolved issues with a partner or family member turn to resentment. As resentment builds up, you can become filled with anger and rage. This is when people tend to "lose control" and blame others for inappropriate behaviors. Some people even get into trouble with the law. Learn appropriate ways to express your feelings of anger, and see how it benefits your relationships.

Anger is one of our fundamental emotions, part of the basic machinery of our mind and personality. In some ways it is a useful tool that helps to motivate and energize us in seeking fairness and justice in the world around us. But this powerful hold-over from our primal history can also be enormously destructive if we lose control of it. If your anger is slipping out of your control and you find yourself saying or doing things that damage your reputation or your relationships, hurt those around you, or otherwise consistently put you on the outside of society's expectations for behavior, you need help to find tools or strategies to change this and I would be happy to help.

Rightful anger has an important place in life where and when it must be expressed. However, there are many forms of anger that are internally destructive and can become externally dangerous to ourselves and others. Some forms of anger come from long term contentious relationships and occurrences which can never go away or decrease in pain and agitation. Some forms of anger are explosive on the moment and other anger comes as a gradual escalating irritation that then reaches its limits. Counseling serves to teach skills of anger management and can defuse and even prevent out of control anger from erupting. Counseling is known to be very effective for addressing and safely controlling anger.

Do you find that you are prone to angry outbursts in your relationships? Do you have a hard time with frustration tolerance? Through an empathic and collaborative approach, you will learn how to identify and understand your feelings and triggers, develop the capacity for frustration tolerance, and strengthen your coping skills so that your anger is no longer a destructive force in your life.