Is Anger healthy?

I say yes. There are instances in life where getting angry is completely appropriate and wholly acceptable. It's how we respond to and display our anger that is important.

This is not the time or place I choose rant and rave and tell the world all of my problems. We all have problems. We all have issues and stressors and children that need throttling. But today, my little world is crashing around my ankles and I find myself reflecting on what it looks like to manage my anger when I want to run, kicking and screaming and throwing rocks at pretty white ducks. Yes, I am hot enough to maim innocent creatures.

As I drove home tonight I thought about the injustices in my world. And I decided to start asking questions and just discourse with God, because the thing is, it's not fair and it's not right and I hate it. People are mean, laws are unjust and I want to poke some of my co-workers in the eyes.

But I can't escape these problems. I'm going to have to deal with them head on without resorting to violence, which also seems unfair. The thing is, I can't escape my life. I could possibly abandon my family and flee to another state and start over, but then I would have to live with myself. Chances are I'd regret it and then spend the next 5 years apologizing and begging forgiveness from my loved ones. But that doesn't mean the thought doesn't cross my mind. If it didn't, I'd be a cyborg.

So here is how I dealt with my anger today...

I cried in my car at lunch for about 15 minutes. I allowed myself that break to just be human and experience full on anger and frustration. Then I wiped my tears, blew my nose and painted a smile on my face. It wasn't the best smile, but it was a smile. Then, when I encountered co-workers and they asked me "How are you today?" I was able to say, "Fine. How are you?" and not look like I felt. And when I got an email with bad news, I picked up the phone and gently instructed the moron who was trying to upset my carefully stacked apple cart that, "No, I'm not going to acquiesce to your request, but I don't want you to take it personally and I truly appreciate your time and consideration and we really should work out a better process in the future." And she was able to kindly say, "Thank you for being so nice and have a nice day."

And I actually felt better. Smile and the feeling will follow.

I arrived home tonight tired and weary. I dragged my sorry body into the house and past the little monsters born of my loins. I started to undress and the neighbor boy walked around the corner and saw me in my underwear. (!)

And I decided to just give up. Because yelling and screaming won't get it done. Those kids are never going to communicate properly. And no matter how many times I poke them with sharp sticks, they just don't get it. So I decided to blog instead of beating them.

See, expressing ones anger is not wrong, and it can be done fruitfully. My last point of note is that anger does not need to be expressed through ice cream and a snickers bar, but it doesn't hurt!