8 Quick Ways to Stop Anger in its Tracks

You cannot believe they did it. Of all people, turning on you this way. You want to react in kind, drawing on the anger flowing through you to lash out. Make the other person hurt every bit as much as you do right now.

Wait a minute. You are not that person. You do not want to BE that person. You are better than this.

But how do you stop anger in its tracks before it gets the best of you?

1.  Do Something Grand

Take your anger and turn it into activism. How can you use this to change the world? Volunteer.  Get involved in the community and make the world a better place.

2.  Forgive

This technique falls under the expert level of anger management. By being the bigger person and forgiving the other, you will find you no longer have reason to be mad at all.

3.  Pay Attention to your Muscles

Like walking, exercise is good. Also, anger tends to tighten you up, so a good stretch, or even better, practicing progressive muscle relaxation, will knock the tension out.

4.  Say Something

Choose a pet phrase that calms you. Say it several times, slowly and deliberately to put your focus elsewhere.

5.  Switch Perspective

It can be hard to use empathy when you are upset. But if you can see things from their perspective, it might help you to calm your response. Many times anger comes from misunderstanding the situation.

6.  Take a Walk

The physical act of walking will burn off some of the adrenaline while getting outside, giving you a distracting change in scenery. And it works even better if you are walking away from the object of your anger. Sometimes all you need is some space.

7.  Visualization

Escape somewhere else. Remove yourself from the situation that has made you mad and find a quiet place where you can visualize something peaceful. Build in as much detail as possible to make it as real as possible. Stay in this vision until you feel yourself start to calm down.

8.  Write About It

Journaling can help you work through your emotions in a way that might even help prevent you from getting mad the next time. Understanding what it was about the event which triggered you will help reshape the trigger entirely.

The key to all of these is simple: do not let anger take control. The last thing you need is for you to fall under the power of negative emotion. Use the anger to make a better place or let it go entirely. In the end, you will be happy you did.