Anger Management Class

Anger Management Class

Do I need an  anger management class?  Anger is a natural emotion that everyone experiences at one time or another, with different levels of frequency and intensity. From a biological perspective, anger is a necessary instinctive, physiological and psychological response to a perceived threat. Anger can become problematic when the situation that elicits it is unwarranted or when the anger experienced is out of proportion to the associated context. Anger can also become distressing and maladaptive when it leads to destructive behaviors, interpersonal conflicts, occupational difficulties, or legal complications. In light of the potentially devastating effects of unhealthy anger responses, anger management classes have been designed to address the specific cognitive deficits that are functioning during such episodes.

It is neither realistic nor possible to completely eliminate anger, therefore, the goal of Anger Management classes is to learn how to cope with and express anger in a healthy way. In Anger Management class, we discuss the difference between anger, hostility, and aggression so that participants can appropriately define and express their experience. Additionally, the Anger Management curriculum is designed to address the effects of anger on the body, behavior, and mind. This interactive course includes various case studies and scenarios that address specific, anger-inducing situations in order to facilitate group dialogues related to appropriate and healthy responses. Additionally, clients will be challenged to objectively question their initial reactions and consequently reframe it to a healthier perspective to reduce emotional saliency and regain self-control. 

You may be asking yourself what constitutes an anger problem. A very good indicator would be having dealt with some sort of legal issues whether or not you felt justified at the time. 

Anon has been working at an automotive parts store for the last 5 years. He is a young African American male in his late 20’s and has been told multiple times by both his superiors and customers what a solid employee he is.
Anger Management Classes
One day while restocking shelves Anon gets called over by his boss. He points out two women who have been standing in an aisle for about 20 minutes and asks him to go help out. Anon arrives and asks the ladies if they need any help. They both turn with disgust on their faces. “Why do you have to come over here and bother us? What you think we’re stealing?” Anon replies courteously and says he is just trying to help. They ask him about a specific part and he replies he will need to look it up. At this point one of the women pulls out a phone and starts recording and saying that he is going into the back of the store to get security. One of Anon’s long time customers walks up and tries to intervene saying what a good guy Anon is, but as soon as he walks up one of the women catches him by the wrist and in a flash of movement the man is judo hip tossed and on the floor. As you can imagine the situation has become rather tense, but Anon is still trying to mediate the situation and apologizing for himself and for the customer. At this point the woman recording puts the phone in Anon’s face and tells him that his mother raised him wrong and that she should be embarrassed for him. This was the final straw for Anon. In a fit of rage he backhands the woman’s phone out of her grasp and sends it flying with the response “no one speaks about my mother that way.”

Just as this happens a couple of officers arrive on the scene and begin to ask questions. What do you think happened? How did this scenario make you feel? Were you feeling angry because of how Anon was being treated?

Anger Management Class

At the end of the day it was our anonymous friend who was arrested that day and charge with Assault. Now you may be reading this and saying to yourself that that is not fair, but what would have occurred if Anon had kept his cool and not lashed out? He would likely have watched the officers remove the ladies from his store and he could continue with his life. Mr. Anonymous wound up doing 4 months of classes because of this. Luckily it was her first arrest and the charge was expunged from his record, because he would have an extremely difficult time landing a job with the world Assault on his arrest record.

So what can we learn from this situation? Well, it’s obvious that these women figured out the correct button to push on our anonymous friend, and when they did he felt as though not only was he justified but that he was doing the right thing. Unfortunately, the law does not see it that way and only sees his contact with the woman’s hand. Here’s the kicker: the buttons don’t just magically appear. HE PUT THE BUTTONS THERE.
Here at AACS Counseling we can teach you new coping strategies that will allow you to not only identify some of the issues within yourself, but we can provide you with healthy, safe, and law-abiding alternatives so that you never allow someone else to take control of your emotions or thoughts.

Please call us at 800-683-7745 to set up your Anger Management classes with AACS Counseling today!

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