We all know what anger is, and we’ve all felt it, whether as a fleeting annoyance or as full-fledged rage.
Anger is a completely normal, usually healthy, human emotion. But when it gets out of control and turns destructive, it can lead to problems—problems at work, in your personal relationships, and in the overall quality of your life.
And it can make you feel as though you’re at the mercy of an unpredictable and powerful emotion.
Anger is a natural, adaptive response to threats; it inspires powerful, often aggressive, feelings and behaviors, which allow us to fight and to defend ourselves when we are attacked. A certain amount of anger, therefore, is necessary to our survival.
People use a variety of both conscious and unconscious processes to deal with their angry feelings.