Anger Management and Counseling in Westwood Los Angeles, CA.

I do not believe in "anger management". Instead, I believe in being in control of your emotions - including anger. My clients discover how to be in control of their feelings of anger or rage - instead of the anger or rage controlling them. My clients discover how they can feel anger, but then choose more effective and productive ways of expressing themselves - in ways that no longer lead to regret or hurt - but rather in ways they feel proud and good about.

Anger has a way of arriving faster than thought and leaving regret in its wake: harsh words you can't take back, a tension others have started to walk around. If that's familiar, there's nothing shameful about it, and it can change. In our work, we'll get serious about it out together: what sets it off, what it's defending, and what it might be expressing of deeper feelings. Much of what drives anger sits just out of view, and bringing it into words tends to take the heat out of it. As you come to understand your own reactions, you gain the freedom to choose how you respond. I've guided many people from explosive reactions to real composure, and I'm confident we can do the same. Let's begin!

I have witnessed first hand the radical transformation that comes with anger management counseling. So many men come into my office suffering from anger issues. Through working together collaboratively the anger dissipates, and what is underneath is usually much more nuanced then originally thought. Men and women suffer from anger differently. Anger Management counseling is a transformative process which creates space for ones' preferred identity to emerge.

Anger is not only something to "manage." The feelings in anger need to be recognized, understood, and responding to in a way that make sense. You're not bad because you are angry, you treat yourself and others badly when your trapped in intense feelings. I help people come out of the shame of being labeled in negative ways because they struggle with anger. Anger becomes less of a struggle when you're not alone in it.

Anger is very closely correlated to depression and is in fact one of its symptoms. When people get labeled as having "anger issues" I as a therapist suspect that there is some form of underlying depression and in most cases early childhood trauma. I use cognitive behavioral therapy, but I also use psycho-dynamic psychotherapy to get down to the root of the underlying reasons for the anger.

A technique I use with Anger Management is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), which looks at our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Anger is a behavior that is an expression of our thoughts and feelings. I will work with you to help unlock the thoughts and feelings causing the anger. We can often correct negative thoughts that can help alter our feelings and behaviors. We can also look into other techniques to develop other coping mechanisms for anger. We resort to anger because that is what we were taught when we were younger. When you have other tools to express yourself and different thoughts, your anger isn't as necessary as often. You are still you. Just a calmer you.

Understanding the source of one's anger is the first step in learning how to control it and communicate feelings instead of reacting negatively to those feelings. Working from a perspective of understanding the underlining needs of you an an individual will help us figure out what technique will work best for your personal situation and therefore result in stronger and appropriate expression of your anger.

As a culture, we do not do well with healthy expressions of anger. Often we are raised to suppress it and then we have limited practice at dealing with big emotion. There is a spectrum of healthy aggression- to keep us safe and to maintain boundaries- and rage- our body's strategy for safety. Anger management is about applying the right "dosing" to maintain boundaries yet not fracture relationships or suffer other losses. I am able to help you learn to regulate your body to be able to apply the appropriate "dose" to be effective and not destructive.

Consider anger a socially acceptable mask that we wear to protect ourselves from more vulnerable feelings. It’s easier to show anger than hurt feelings. The way I work with anger is to explore what’s fueling the anger, what’s underneath it. Once the underlying feelings are identified and acknowledged, the anger becomes less intense and more manageable. I also use a somatic approach to anger, using physiological cues to recognize it before it grows out of control.

I work closely with my clients and their families in identifying the triggers and body cues which preceed an anger episode. Focusing on being in touch with ones emotional experience prior to an outburst allows my clients to begin to identify and disrupt this behavioral pattern prior to a full meltdown. Behaviors are much easier to change before full escalation, and working with my clients and families on identifying these clues and implimenting effective coping strategies is a pivotal part of change.

I provide individual psychotherapy for anger management. Anger is normal emotion that everyone experiences. It becomes a problem when one expresses anger inappropriately or one lacks the proficiency to express any emotions but anger. I use Humanistic and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) to help my clients understand their anger, improve their emotional experience, and express their emotions in healthy ways. A healthy emotional life is the cornerstone of living a full and successful life.

Grey Matters International and the work of Kevin J. Fleming, Ph.D approaches issues of anger management in a very humane yet fresh perspective. You see, anger is a normal emotion but it is the valence (intensity) as well as the coupling choice of what one does with this that is the problem. Telling someone to "not" do it or modifying behavior with a trite psychological plan that only breeds a compliant response is not the way to change anger. Brainwaive optimization is a new cutting edge technology that allows one to rewire circuitry responsible for reactivity driving the anger. Contact Grey Matters International, Inc now at kevin@kevinflemingphd.com or 877-606-6161

Anger is often seen as a negative feeling, however anger is just as useful as any other emotion. It shows us where we feel disrespected or mistreated. While feelings can not be wished away, thoughts that impact feelings can be challenged. In my work with anger management, I help to locate the sources of anger and teach calming and regulatory exercises to help change unhealthy behaviors associated with anger into healthier ones.