Anger Assessment

Sometimes it's difficult for people to come to the realization that they have an anger problem. Part of the difficulty is just not knowing how to assess their own anger objectively. If they look at their anger subjectively they can always come up with justifications and excuses for their behavior.

If you'd like to take an objective look at your behavior, thoughtfully writing down answers to the following questions may help you to become aware of the problem areas:

One example of an angry episode in the past month was....

Looking at the episode as if in slow motion:

• How did it start?
• How was I feeing?
• What happened next?
• Was I feeling anything noticeable in my body?
• What was I thinking?
• What did I do then?
• How was my body feeling when I did that?
• What was I saying to myself at the time?
• What did I do next?
• How did my body feel?
• What were my thoughts?
• How did it end?
• At the end of the episode, did I feel satisfied with how I handled it?

What happens most often when I get angry?

• Are there things that escalate my anger?
• Are there things that help me to calm down?
• Which happens more often: escalation, or being able to calm myself down?

Have other people told me that I have an anger problem?

*****

If you're not happy with the answers you wrote down, then it's time to seek help with your anger.