Anger Management Therapy

Anger problems may be more common amongst men than women, but they affect members of both genders. Failure to deal with anger constructively often has serious consequences in terms of family and love relationships, personal health, and dealings with bosses and co-workers. For some, this reflects negative training from childhood, having been the target of someone else's destructive anger growing up. For others, it can be the result of unmanageable stress or an acute life crisis in current circumstances. Some people are equally afraid of their own and other people's angry feelings.

It is possible to resolve such anger issues through a combination of behavioural and cognitive techniques and the therapeutic process of self-examination. Because anger is often a defence against other, more vulnerable feelings—for instance, fear or grief—people find that when they know how to deal with their anger, they are better able to deal with all their feelings. Anger has the same value as any emotion and is an inevitable response to certain aspects of life, including intimate relationships. Through learning anger management, people can achieve deeper and more satisfying relationships in all areas of their lives.

Kenneth Demsky worked for five years in one of the most demanding areas of anger management: with male batterers and their female partners in a publicly-funded programme addressing domestic violence in Austin, Texas, USA. During that time he was involved in re-shaping the therapy component of the programme, re-writing the workbook and making presentations to women's shelters. Since then, he has helped many men and women from varied backgrounds and facing different challenges learn to manage their anger in healthy ways.