Yelling, hitting, throwing tantrums, biting- sound similar? These are the signs of easily offended and quick-to-anger adolescents. Anger is a normal in every human being and adolescents are no different. It is fine to be angry at something or someone. However, when this anger becomes more intense and frequent, then it can hamper your relationships and also result in health issues. A majority of the adolescents find it difficult to channelise their anger in a proper way. If your teen too deals with this problem, then here are a few tips to manage your teens anger:
1. Identify what Triggers anger
Identify the situations that anger you. Once you recognise them, it becomes easy to handle such situations.For instance, feeling disrespected or hearing a “No” from your loved one might make you angry. Help your teen identify the triggers and ways to deal with them.
2. Identify the Warning Signs
When you are angry, your body responds to it. This includes high blood pressure, increased heart rate, and muscle tension. Help your teen recognises these warning signs. Also, help him/her develop self-control measures during those time.
3. Self-talk
In their book Anger Management for the 21st Century, authors Dr. Tony Fiore and Dr. Ari Novick claim that self-talk is the most effective way to deal with anger. Replace the negative feelings with rational thoughts. Say a simple positive message to yourself during stressful situations.
4. Engage in Useful activities
Encourage the adolescents to engage in activities such as drawing, writing down their feelings, exercising or taking a stroll outside. They can even talk to a person they trust and distract their mind from the cause of anger.This helps them cope with anger in a healthy way.
5. Think before you leap
When angry, adolescents do not think twice before acting. Such impulsive actions often have negative consequences. Help them consider alternative solutions. For instance, rather than yelling at their parents, they can talk and share thoughts.
6. Walk Away
Detaching themselves from the situation that angers them, can help a teen calm down. When the intensity of anger is so high where they cannot employ any anger management technique, encourage them to walk away until they are able to calm themselves down.
7. Take some time out
Encourage the teens to give themselves short breaks during the time of the day that is stressful. A few quiet moments help them prepare themselves for the stress.
8. Resort to humour
This is the best way to lighten up any stressful situation. However, avoid sarcasm. This can hurt feelings.
9. Learn Relaxation Skills
Help you teen practice relaxation skills such as breathing exercises or imagining a calming scene during stressful situations.
10. Seek professional Help
In case the adolescents find it difficult to manage their anger, seek professional help. Consult a psychologist. They can help identify and understand the problem and suggest effective measures to reduce them. If you want to get psychological counselling in Kolkata, then get in touch with us. Our expert team provide guidance tailored as per the need of your adolescent to help them overcome their problem.
Controlling anger can be challenging; however, we hope that these steps will help your teen learn the techniques and cope with their anger in a healthy manner.
