No More Anger! Be Your Own Anger Management Coach
- London Karnac Books 2008
- 190p
includes index and biblioraphy
WHAT IS ANGER? 5 Too much of a good thing - the stress response 5 So, what exactly happens to my body when I become angry? 6 Some statistics about anger 10 So, just how angry am I? 10 Are some people more susceptible? 12 Could I have learnt to be angry? 16 Is all anger bad? 17 Anger can mask anxiety 20 Is it possible to change from being passive to being angry? 21 WAYS THAT ANGER CAN SHOW ITSELF 22 o Irritability 22 o Frustration 22 o Anger 23 o Rage 24 o Psychological conditions that have anger associated with them 25 o Physical conditions 26 o Life events 27 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 28 Can my anger harm me? 28 Will I have a nervous breakdown? 28 Why do I feel so tired? 29 Can I really learn to control my anger? 29 What about medication - isn`t there a pill that will cure me? 29 o Can alcohol help calm me? 30 BECOMING ANGER-FREE 31 o Help yourself to manage stress 31 o Techniques and strategies for managing anger related to stress 31 ANGER-FREE THINKING 43 The four stages of change 43 Does optimism pay? 44 Are my thoughts real? 47 How do my beliefs affect me? 48 Faulty thinking 49 Healthy thinking 50 Keeping an anger diary 52 Negative thoughts 55 The role of judgements 55 Types of negative thinking 56 Edit your thoughts 66 Challenge your thoughts 68 Personalization and blame 70 Catastrophizing 72 Life rules 72 Demands that may increase your anger 74 Challenging your demands 75 Summary 77 The role of inhibitors 79 Putting it all together - a model for understanding your anger 80 The concept of good moods and bad moods 80 Learn to accept yourself 84 Tips to help you like yourself 84 Learn to appreciate yourself 88 The life audit 89 Distraction 90 ANGER-FREE EMOTIONS 92 Learn to be emotionally smart 92 Learning to appreciate yourself and others 97 Other people`s emotions 99 How to deal with strong emotion 99 Don`t put things off!!! 101 Get moving 102 Guilt 103 Cost-benefit analysis 105 The role of assertiveness 107 Shame and humiliation 107 How to deal with shame and humiliation 108 Dealing with worry 109 Relaxation 111 How to use coping imagery to deal with negative emotions 111 ANGER-FREE ACTIONS 113 o Graded exposure 113 o Using coping imagery to reduce anger 115 o Problem-solving 118 o Six-stage problem-solving model 118 o Assertion training 126 Four types of behaviour 127 What assertiveness involves 132 Some assertiveness skills 133 Managing instant reactions 134 Less is more 134 More assertiveness skills 135 My personal rights 138 Dealing with difficult situations 139 Handling criticism 142 Giving criticism 142 Managing put-downs 144 Using the `traffic light` system 144 The role of`time out` 146 Learning how to argue 146 WHAT AN ANGER-FREE LIFE REQUIRES 152 o Time management 152 o Stress busting 158 THE ANGER-FREE DIET 161 o Anger and dieting tips 161 o What can I do to help myself? 162 o What food can I eat? 164 WHAT TYPE OF HELP IS AVAILABLE? 167 o Talking about the problem 167 o Self-help groups 167 o Anger management groups 167 o Learning to relax 168 o Psychological therapies 168