More anger

A while back I made note of the fact that I was thinking about anger and illness. Two things came out of that humble comment. 1) People were concerned that I was angry. What shocked me was that they thought my anger was a problem. Had I been angry it still would not have been a problem. No more than any other healthy emotion. You know, joy, sadness, fear, pensiveness. 2) It became clear that anger carries a stigma. Anger = Problem. Well, not in my book.

This is the last note I will make as a result of reading the Gabor Mate book mentioned in my last note.

About anger...

The repression of anger and the unregulated acting-out of it are both examples of the abnormal release of emotions that is at the root of disease. If in repression the problem is a lack of release, acting out consists of an equally abnormal suppression of release alternating with unregulated and exaggerated venting. I had a fascinating conversation with Allen Kaplin, a physician and psychotherapist in Toronto. He points out that both repression and rage represent a fear of the genuine experience of anger.

Healthy anger is an empowerment and a relaxation. The real experience of anger "is physiologic experience without acting out. The experience is one of a surge of power going through the system, along with a mobilization to attack. There is, simultaneously, a complete disappearance of all anxiety.

If anger is relaxation, then what is rage? When I am in a rage, my face is tight, muscles tense, and I look anything but relaxed. "The question is, What do people really experience when they experience rage? It's fascinating to ask people. If you really ask, the majority will describe anxiety." [272-273 When the Body Says No]

So acting out and repression are both ways to avoid feeling one's emotions. What does this tell us, for example, about one of our favorite forms of entertainment ? (Violence) The hero gets angry and reacts. The master gets angry and responds.

OH! Now I'm really mad! ;(