Anger and aggression are normal feelings, just like sadness and happiness. When any feeling is avoided or ignored, it can cause issues down the road. Feelings are an indicator that we are alive and human. However, due to the discomfort of these feelings, some individuals try to avoid feeling them at all costs.
Unacknowledged anger and aggression can lead to anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders. It can even cause physical pain, in some cases, causing serious issues that need attention. In many cases, people may not realize why they are distressed or out of sorts. Their feelings of anger have been tucked away so neatly that they hardly remember or notice that they are actually still there.
Mental health treatment can help you address unacknowledged anger and aggression. Through different forms of therapy and measures of treatment, you can find release and relief. Being disgruntled without the recollection of why is unhealthy and not just another one of life’s inevitabilities. Treatment can help you unpack your feelings so that you can process them and move forward in better health.
We all have them, but sometimes they go so easily unnoticed. Feelings are an emotional state subject to your experiences. These experiences can be evoked by a plethora of things, such as one’s traditions, personal beliefs, and environment.
Types of feelings or emotions are:
It is necessary to acknowledge all feelings. Even feelings of hatred. It is an unpleasant and potentially dangerous feeling. However, acknowledging hate as it arises within you offers the opportunity to dissect it and understand if it is a healthy form of hate, like hatred for crime or injustice. Acknowledging that feeling and understanding where it comes from and whether or not it is healthy can produce the appropriate reaction, like voting versus taking the law into your own hands.
Anger may sound like a negative feeling, but feelings are not necessarily negative. Reactions to feelings are where the true negativity comes in. Anger can be healthy and help you process whatever triggered that feeling and heal before the reaction or aggression comes into play.
For example, if you are angry due to mistreatment, that is a natural feeling and reaction to something that should not be or have happened. However, if you become aggressive and react violently based on that emotional pain, the anger can build, giving that trigger power over you.
Falling into aggression is not safe. It is a never-ending road that takes you further than you ever intended to go. This bumpy road with a dead end can leave you frantically changing out your moods based on anxiety and paranoia based on the origin of the pent-up aggression. When this goes unacknowledged, you can become a shell of yourself, causing impaired cognition and the inability to be present in a moment.
Feelings are meant to be felt, and when anger goes untreated, it can cause more damage than the initial feeling of it. Sometimes individuals have tucked away and carried anger for years. As these feelings have not been addressed, it takes up unavailable space in one’s life.
Feeling your feeling, even the seemingly negative ones, keeps you grounded. Whatever triggered you to feel angry triggered you for a reason. Choosing to ignore the feeling or repressing the memory of what caused it will only make matters worse.
Think of it like sweeping dirt under the rug versus into a dustpan and throwing it away. The more dirt you sweep under the rug, the higher the rug sits, with filth ready to burst from its corners at any moment. When you handle your feelings in this manner, you are like a volcano that can erupt at any time. Problems with anger can be linked to various diagnoses.
Holing in or repressing anger can cause:
At SoCal Mental Health, we know that understanding and addressing unresolved feelings, particularly anger and aggression, is a critical part of mental health treatment. These emotions, when unacknowledged, can contribute significantly to mental health challenges. Recognizing the need to process these feelings in a healthy way is essential for overall well-being.
Our directory lists various treatment facilities in Southern California, where individualized care plans are designed to meet your specific needs. Whether it’s group therapy for peer support, one-on-one talk therapy to explore deeper issues, or alternative therapies like yoga and meditation, you can find a treatment approach that resonates with you. The aim is to help you confront and manage these emotions effectively, fostering healthier mental states.
If you or someone you know is struggling with unacknowledged feelings of anger or other emotional difficulties, our directory can guide you to the right resources. These facilities are dedicated to helping individuals understand and address their emotions constructively, paving the way for healing and mental health improvement. Reach out to explore treatment options and take a step towards better emotional health.
