Term Paper Blog 2

I chose to write my term paper on Anger. Handling A Powerful Emotion In A Healthy Way, by Gary Chapman. I am going to be honest. I thought this book was going to be a lot more helpful than it really turned out to be. He made some excellent points, but it was real religious based. I am not saying there is anything wrong with that, but the book read to a Christian audience. To someone who does not really place themselves in a particular religious group, this book could be a bit difficult to agree or practice. Many of his ideas to help with anger were practices that I already try to do. He did mention a few things about passive aggressive behavior I found interesting, and also harboring resentment. I don't expect to discover as much of a result as I originally thought, but I do think that this will help me in the future. I am going to have to work really hard on communicating effectively. Also, I am going to have to work really hard on determining what type of anger I am feeling. Is it anger due from an injustice, or is it anger of a perceived wrong but not necessarily a wrong? The last thing I am going to have to change is harboring resentment. Mr. Chapman says in his book that you should give it all to God and as a result you will not longer harbor it. However,  I think that is easier said than done. I find that I have issues with thinking I let it go only to realize down the road that perhaps I did not. I have not has as many opportunities to become angry as of yet. Basically, several things must happen (which I have been practicing). Admit to myself that I am angry. Identify what type of anger it is. Talk to someone close about the issue. Talk to the actual person who participated in making me angry. Once it is resolved, let it go. If it is not resolved, remove that person from my life and let it go. I do anticipate difficulties. It is never easy to retrain how your brain works. My first instinct when angry is to explode, or to remove myself. Defense mechanisms are never easy to change. The same goes for how someone normally deals with a problem, even if it is not the healthiest of ways to deal with it. I think this is going to be a trial and error experience. I cannot say that I know how I will handle these difficulties. I imagine though that I will do alright with the outlined steps above.