It is normal to feel angry in our daily life when we are threatened or treated unfairly.  We can feel angry towards climate change due to people’s apathy towards forest destruction or towards childhood poverty caused by poor corporate governance in a corrupt nation.  

‘Healthy anger’ requires the ability to pause, reflect and assess whether the threat we feel is real or immediately threatening and to respond appropriately and constructively.  People with healthy anger react with mindfulness and compassion so that their response to these threats are well thought out and effective.

‘Unhealthy or bad anger’ however, results directing hurtful, negative and destructive response to the other person (co-worker, spouse or strangers) or situation.  This results in unpleasant confrontation which perpetuates and difficult to resolve.  (click to learn more https://blog.teleme.co/2019/12/05/understanding-anger/)

Click to view PragerU video on How to Manage Anger Wisely

Ask yourself the following 25 questions to determine whether you might have anger issues.

Questions (answer either True or False)         

• I have had trouble at my work place job because of my temper                   
• People say that I fly off the handle easily          
• I don’t always show my anger but when I do, it is bad                     
• I still get angry when I think of the bad things people have done to me in the past.                 
• I hate lines, and I especially hate waiting in line                   
• I often find myself engaged in heated arguments with the people who are close to me       
• At times I have felt angry enough to hurt someone                
• When someone says or does something that upsets me, I don’t usually say anything at the time, but later I spend a lot of time thinking of cutting replies which I could and should have made          
• I find it very hard to forgive someone who has done me wrong                  
• I get angry with myself when I lose control of my emotions           
• I get agitated when people do not behave the way I expect them to          
• If I get really upset about something, I will feel sick with headaches, stomach ache or diarrhoea
• When things do not go my way, I explode        
• I become so frustrated that I cannot put it out of my mind                 
• I have been so angry at times I could not remember what I said or did                      
• Sometimes I feel so hurt and alone that I have thought about hurting myself                     
• After arguing with someone, I despise or even hate myself            
• When riled, I often blurt out things which I later regret saying                      
• Some people are afraid of my bad temper        
• When I get angry, frustrated or hurt, I comfort myself by eating, smoking or using alcohol       
• After someone has hurt me, I want to get even or take revenge                  
• I have gotten so angry at times that I have become physically violent, throw or break things         
• I sometimes lie awake at night thinking about the things that upset me during the day            
• People I have trusted have often let me down, leaving me feeling betrayed and angry             
• My temper has already caused lots of problems and I think I need help to change  

Scoring the Anger Self-Assessment Test

Yes to more than 10. You have anger issues and you can benefit from some guidance

Yes to 5-10. You have average anger issues but can improve by not to taking things too personally

Less than 5. You are level-headed and have good self control

Do download TELEME mobile app to chat with a psychologist or counsellor to help you find peace within yourself at work and at home.

Disclaimer. TELEME blog posts contains general information about health conditions and treatments. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. The information is not advice and should not be treated as such. 

If you think you may be suffering from any medical condition, you should seek immediate medical attention from your doctor or other professional healthcare providers. You should never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment because of information on this website.