Anger, Friend or Foe?

I like to reflect on the moments in life that have caused me great anger, they are anchor points that have always transformed the trajectory of my life. Anger is a formidable force of nature, it is a powerful energy that rushes the body with blood and prepares it to take action. The idea that Anger can be a great friend or foe is a concept that I have explored in and out of the office. The manifestation of Anger should always be seen as an opportunity to reflect and take action. More often the actions we take are destructive and without much thought or strategy. Excessive anger blinds the person and makes almost all processing incomprehensible. The Prefrontal cortex the part of the brain that helps in learning and cognition gets bombarded with information and begins to rewire the resources of the body to respond with physical response. This type of rewiring of the brain can lead to a cycle of repetitive behaviors that are fueled by anger. The Amygdala is used in the perception of emotions such as fear and aggression, can be a mayor tool in stimulating a reward seeking aggressive/ angry behavior. Studies have demonstrated that the manifestation of excessive anger creates a reward seeking repetitive cycle that can be as destructive as it is useful.

            Think of a moment of Anger, how did you respond? Was it fueled by something out of your control? More often anger instigates more anger, if you scream and your face muscles contract, your eyes bulge, your nostrils open. This is a biological reaction taught from the earliest memories and biological programing, to show dominance and to express disapproval. Most likely creating the same response from the person you are projecting it to. A quote from Aristotle “Anybody can become angry - that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not within everybody's power and is not easy.” Excessive anger takes over the controls and limits our ability to see beyond actions and consequences and only worry about the Immediate response or gratification. This is the case of many conflicts within our social network, from the mass shooters who project their anger and disapproval with the death of so many innocent people. To the home argument that causes the person to explode and throw the plate across the room. All blinded by their rage and their inability to process, hijacked by their own impulses. Let us consider the habitual angry person who is quick to respond with anger when things don’t go their way, or when circumstances shift. It is a mass control that the person seeks, unaware that the world they live in is full of variables, and actions with infinite amounts of reactions. Staying in the mindset that they can control every external thing that happens to them, is energy wasted and a life neglected. This lack of adaptation creates a cycle of Anger/ Aggressive response, this behavior is viewed in childhood and studied by developmental psychologists. The observation that a child that does not get instant gratification or the attention he/she desires will relate an angry reaction.  This was studied by developmental psychologist in a classroom setting where they set up kids ranging from 4-5 years old and where told that they will be getting 1 marshmallow now or they could choose to wait 15 minutes and get 2 marshmallows later. With the majority of the students choosing the instant gratification the few who waited and decided to wait and go through a level of internal suffering to wait and get more. They were observed to self sooth, by resting, playing, distracting from the fact that they had to wait. As you can imagine the amount of mental exhaustion a 4-year-old has to go through to wait for candy, this was later found to be the beginning stages of what could develop into an empathetic personality one willing to set aside instant gratification for the greater good of the group.  Developmental Professionals call this emotional intelligence, the work of Daniel Goleman and his book Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than Iq. New York: Bantam Books, 1995. Print. Brings light to the subject and underlines the importance of Emotional Intelligence for the balance of Emotions throughout life.

 

Figure C-1

Figure C-1 illustrates the pathway of the sub categories of anger, and even tho anger can be an active force. It is also used in Physical self harm, Vengeful thinking and low self esteem. Understanding and adapting to the ever changing world is a tool to master in the case of anger. I suggest that Anger become an agent of good, an emotion best suited for accomplishing and taking action towards what as once seems impossible. I observe so many movements of civil unrest, movements for comprehensive gun reform, movements for social equality, gender identification and acceptance, movements that harbor the best of humanity in acceptance and inclusion. These are all agents of anger, a mass of individuals uniting with a purpose in peace and unity. How could such demonstrations be agents of Anger? Well I like to think that the motivating factor for all of these movements come from a general disagreement, frustration, and anger towards an establishment, law, or oppressor. The driving force of action becomes exactly what these groups the oppressors try to avoid. We all like to hear the term Peaceful protest, and peaceful expression. These actions come from the root of anger, and that is ok. Anger becomes a tool, not the master, a driving force but not its conductor. Anger in our lives is the spark we all need to succeed. And in social and personal change it can be the vehicle to reach those goals.

A leading example of how anger can spark the creative process for change, is none other than the Civil Rights movement lead by the Great Martin Luther King Jr. who used peaceful ways of protest to gather awareness to the suffering of the African Americans/ people of color and the protections of equal rights and liberties to all men. As peaceful and civil as his actions were towards what at the time was a hostile and even deadly environment for any person looking to change the status quo. The movement and the subsequent chain of events where sparked by the lingering anger and injustice suffered for centuries of oppression by institutionalized racism in the United States. This Anger surfaced as many African Americans were abused by the government that many fought and died to protect. The Anger exploded in violent protests with many acts of Terrorism targeted to oppress people’s desire for change and bringing in fear to control a population. It was this Anger that sparked this movement but rather than repeat the same mistakes of violence and aggression that many had suffered; the proponents of the Civil Rights movement chose peaceful and civil disobedience to express their message. This is how Anger was shifted and its polarity changed from an agent of destruction and chaos to the driving force for change.

The Biological Response to Excessive Anger in the Body

     Anger as a driving and powerful force for change is in constant play as we navigate the world. Anger that becomes controlling and manipulating can lead to expressions illustrated in Figure C-1. Anger in the body manifest through the circulatory and secretion systems. The moment of aggression and anger leads to a rush feeling of blood flow to the extremities, a way to oxygenate the muscles and prepare them for action. This rush of blood leaves the brain starving and many of its cognitive and computing resources blocked. The liver through the chemical receptors in the brain begins to send signals to to the gallbladder to produce bile and the liver to expedite its secreting function. Due to the complexity of the liver and the many jobs it has in the body, the livers hyperactivity can have adverse effects in many areas of the body. This reaction adds burden to the heart, increasing its load to send blood to the extremities. The anger has now become toxic leading to the stress to the heart,  putting the person at higher risk of heart attack and or cardiac problems. The blood flow can create blood pressure to fluctuate drastically throughout the body. The added stress to the gallbladder and the liver, keep them from doing their jobs and the gallbladder begins to store excess bile which will turn into gallstones. The added stress to the liver from the Immediate response of the anger and blood flow will cause it to store excess fats. Another major organ drastically changed by anger is the Pancreas, both a hormonal and digestive organ. The pancreas shoots excess insulin into the bloodstream to be easily absorbed to the muscles and thus increasing the risk of insulin resistance in the body which will undoubtedly lead to risk of Diabetes.

            Joe was a client of mine who came in with his wife, Joe had a severe dysfunction of his liver and was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver and fatty liver syndrome. His liver was in constant healing mode trying to recover from years of alcohol abuse. His liver was accumulating water and he had to go to the hospital every week to get liquid removed from his abdomen that would build up. Joe walked into my office with a vibrate wife, whom by my interaction with her was very apt and knowledgeable about natural remedies and alternative methods. This made me feel more confident and I can speak with more ease as she understood all of my instructions on ways to help him. Joe in the other hand was a bit more closed minded about any medical/ alternative ways, he had only seen a doctor once after suffering from extreme liver pain and inflammation. He was in a previous mentality that he did not need any help. Now after his diagnosis he was more open minded and in our first session was receptive but still a bit apprehensive on how this “alternative” method would help him. His wife fully convinced at the efficacy of alternative/ holistic methods was encouraging and understandingly optimistic. Joe was quite and reserved as I spoke to him about the risks of having the liver be so severely damaged, something that his doctors did not mention to him. I asked him if he still drank alcoholic beverages and his responded with an affirmative “NO” I could tell that it had caused him great pain and that he was now aware of how dangerous alcohol could be. When I asked him if he had any desire to do so again, he again said “NO.” Understanding that he was done with that stage of his life. He mentioned that he started to drink from the age of 12 years old and had drank beer/ alcohol  his entire adult life. The drinking had been passed down by his father, who was a heavy drinker and was tragically shot as he tried to start a fight with another man while intoxicated. This left Joe traumatized, not only was he without a father but he had to become the head of the household at an early age. Drinking became second nature, as a right of passage for a young Joe now working and making money. Drinking was his show of dominance and authority in his house where from an early age would show up drunk to his mother’s home and get into conflicts with his siblings and mother. Joe left home soon after, thinking he was a man at that early age. Joe worked and worked saving and wasting money only feeding his addiction festering anger and frustration at the world, growing impatient and aggressive just like his father before him. He later married and started a family. The birth of his children did nothing to alter his behavior and he continued down the self destructive path, seeking control and authority from the people closest to him. Now what was once a striking and vibrant man, now a fragile and damaged individual unable to mend the wounds of so many years. I asked Joe if he was willing to change his anger and this attachments to anger. Joe looked into the distance as if to play back the countless moments of anger, aggression, self destruction, abuse and neglect, and said in a soft voice “yes.” I told him that his life depended on it, making sure that he understood that the response towards anger would only do him harm. I proceeded to do a simple visualization technique, to close his eyes and envision what he would do once he was healthy and strong. I made sure to ask him to visualize and feel the emotions of what he wanted to do. Once he opened his eyes he began by telling me that he would travel to his home town where he had abandoned his family and left all those years ago. I asked him what he would do once he was there, he replied and said “I would go up to my brother and yell at him for taking my property away.” I was surprised at how his mind was so quick to lean towards an aggressive tone and behavior that I mentioned to him that it was that response that needed to change, that his mind had to be free from connecting with anger. Even in this fantasy and safe place his reaction was to attack and defend what he once lost long ago. After much conversation he got a better understanding of how he had to practice emotional catch and release so that his anger would not bottle up. Joe and his wife left the session optimistic that this was the step in the right direction. Joe soon started to feel better and began his daily practice of letting go and stopping the pathway of anger, that he was so accustom to. Feeling more grateful towards his wife, the relationship and communication had improved between them and the love that they shared for each other was beginning to shine through. Recovery seemed closer and closer, he still had to go visit the doctors to remove liquid, but now he was more optimistic and he was feeling more energetic. Soon after his visit to the hospital he got a call from his brother, demanding information about the property he owned in Mexico, unable to come to a conclusion Joe lashed back just like he had done countless times, screaming and threatening retaliation. This conflict left Joe weak and as he was preparing to go to the store with his wife, he collapsed in his bedroom dead from a heart attack.

            This is a tale of anger out of control, damaging and hurting the body. A tale of so many people in our society ruled by anger and frustration, giving control to their basic instinct without the ability to gain self control. Joe was unable to let go and that glimpse of peace was shattered, his heart could not be broken one more time. It only takes a few of these risk factors to harm the body, creating a toxic waste land inside the body a dysfunction only known as Symptom X. I welcome the inquiry into the effects of anger in the body, because as we become less self aware and more detached the tale tale signs of anger will only be more ignored and misunderstood. I pray for Joe, that he may find peace now in heaven.

By: Dr. Sergio Alvarez CEC,CNHC,ND