Question

Explain the reassessment technique of anger management.

i) Taking responsibility for your anger

ii) Changing the direction of thoughts

iii) Developing empathy

iv) Using compassion.

Answer 1

Reassessment means reevaluating. When you reassess a situation, you analyze it again to see if you come to the same conclusion about it.

Reassessment - Effective anger management technique:

1. Taking responsibility for your anger: Take complete responsibility for your emotion rather than blaming someone else for it. This empowers you to acknowledge your emotions and behaviour. You are not accepting responsibility for the other person’s choices and feelings nor surrendering or defending yourself or admitting it is your fault. You are merely paying attention and shifting the focus on your needs that were not satisfied in a given situation. Eg: Your best friend lied to you. In this situation, you feel disrespected, hurt and disappointed without being judgmental of what is good or bad. Now that you are aware of it you will be able to control how you will behave and respond to that friend in a rational manner.
2. Developing empathy: Developing empathy for the person that wronged you can also help you slow down the anger, as you understand that your adversary is also struggling with difficult emotions like you. When you reach this stage of reassessment you would have calmed down still in your anger meter.
3. Using compassion: each one is going through their own battle of emotions. Understanding that they are also humans and are capable of making mistakes empowers you to deal with your anger in a better way. Eg you might choose to break your friendship with this friend who lied to you and that may be perfectly sensible to you. You need to decide for yourself which kind of behavior you are willing to tolerate or not tolerate. Set certain boundaries and let go. 
4. Conduct a Reality check: You will be in a better position to monitor your anger if you conduct a reality check of the situation you are facing. Take a 360 ° view of the situation and look clearly at what happened. You need to step away from your initial judgments and gather more evidence before setting upon a course of action or taking a decision. Some key questions to ask yourself. For example, How important is the friend to you now that you have faced a situation involving him or her?, Is your anger justified given the facts of what happened? Would an average person get angry, faced with the same situation?