Transcripts

Brenda Shoshanna:
Really we're living with an epidemic of anger in the country and anger is a significant toxin that really erodes our physical, mental and emotional well-being.

Dr. Brenda Shoshanna, author of the book, The Anger Diet says people with an anger problem often don't know it, but there are symptoms.

You have an anger problem if you're feeling a lot of anxiety, if people around you are having difficulty keeping relationships happy. If you have consistent high blood pressure or heart illness, heart disease is often fueled by anger. And if you're just generally unhappy and dissatisfied in your life, look a little deeper.

Dr. Shoshanna believes it's important we learn to handle anger in a healthy way.

And what that means is first of all to recognize that you are angry when you are and then to engage in what I call constructive healthy responsible communication. Which means instead of blaming the other person, instead of looking for revenge. What you do is you take responsibility for your own feelings and you simply say, "Right now I'm feeling angry, and this is why, and this is what I need to feel better and let's talk about what's happening." That is a very healthy and good way to deal with it because you're not putting it on someone else- saying, " Oh it's because of you, you're this, you're that." You're dealing with what's really going on.

At somethingyoushouldknow.net I'm Mike Carruthers and that's Something You Should Know.