Anger, CBT and DBT
Anger is information. The trouble starts with what happens next.
Anger has an evolutionary origin and a real physiological signature: heart rate, blood pressure, face and voice. It is not the problem. Aggression is a separate thing, and it is learnable and unlearnable.
The anger arousal curve
Every episode has a shape. Knowing where you are on it decides which skill is still available to you.
1. Trigger
The event, and the meaning you give it.
2. Escalation
Heart rate and blood pressure climb.
3. Peak
Aggression, if it happens, happens here.
4. De-escalation
Arousal drops, judgment returns.
5. Recovery
Below where you started. Worth studying.
Eight articles, placed on the curve
Trigger
What anger is, and where it comes from
Anger-Basic Emotion April 7, 2012 Anger-Normal Emotion January 22, 2012Escalation
When it climbs, and how it is treated
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Anger Management August 8, 2013 Dialectical Behavior Therapy Treats Borderline Personality Disorder February 3, 2013De-escalation
The skills that bring it back down
Dialectical Behavior Therapy February 7, 2013 Dialectical Behavior Therapy Group February 8, 2013Recovery
What often sits underneath
CBT and Anxiety June 28, 2013 Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Depression June 10, 2013