Cleary University students released their anger by taking a sledgehammer to a van recently during mid-term week.
This first “smash the car” activity allowed students an opportunity to unleash their anger, stress and anxiety in a safe way.
According to Andrew Chamberlain, a licensed professional counselor and associate professor at Cleary who supported and encouraged the event, “emotions are meant to be understood, felt, honored, held and released.
“Anger is as healthy an emotion as joy or happiness,” he said. “It must be engaged, felt, acknowledged and understood. To engage our emotions in healthy ways, we need to give them space and permission to exist.
“Emotions are nervous system states and sensations within us that act as communication and serve as data. Our body and brain are a profound communication system, and emotions are data that generate in the brain as our body and mind work to assess the terrains of our lives and the relationships that happen all around us. By smashing a car, students are feeling, understanding, acknowledging and expressing their nervous system state. Holding in emotions can cause unhealthy mental health.”
Chamberlain said that how we express our emotions is important: “Do no harm to yourself or others. Reacting quickly to our anger can lead to negative outcomes. Stop, think and respond appropriately. Self-awareness is needed to help resolve and honor our emotions. The car smash event gave students the space and permission to unleash their emotions, and learn in a creative and fun way some anger management skills.”
Letting anger simmer or having rage outbursts can damage personal and professional relationships, Chamberlain said, and constantly bottling up frustrations can lead to physical and emotional problems, impacting your emotional health.
That is why learning to manage your anger constructively is so critical to your well-being, Chamberlain explains.
Here are a few options Chamberlain recommends:
1. Take deep breaths. In the heat of the moment, most people want to react immediately, but a few deep breaths gives us the pause we need to respond in a healthy way.
2. Try repeating a calming phrase that will help you to express your distress more constructively.
3. Try visualization. Find your happy place and go there in your mind.
4. Mindfully move your body to help release tension in your muscles. Take a walk, change your environment, do what you can to distract yourself physically.
5. Remain in perspective. We all have bad days; don’t let the situation overcome you.
6. Defuse anger with humor. It can change your negative emotions quickly.
7. Recognize your anger triggers and be armed with solutions to manage them.
8. Verbalize your anger. If you are not ready to talk with the person who has caused your anger, vent your feelings to a trusted friend. This also helps you calm down so you can face the source of your anger more productively and constructively.
If you find you still cannot manage your anger effectively and it is impacting your life and your relationships, you may want to consider seeking professional help.
