Here's the situation:

I know a person who is usually calm, but does get pissed off every now and then. But never anything serious....

once in a blue moon, said person would just totally blow up - presumably from containing all that accumulated anger or something.

Said person has managed to scare people away, and most importantly scare away someone very important to him and probably will never gain that person's trust/comfort ever again...

Any suggestions on how to better channel it?



or is a psychiatrist the only way out?

heard of suggestions to slowly let steam out instead of accumulating it.

However, also heard that it only makes it worse...

__________________
2008 BMW 335i Coupe

You could well be describing me. I was so bad20 years ago, that some of my friends thought I was manic-depressive. I could be just fine, then something would set me off. Like a bomb!
Here's what I've done to get a grip.
Counseling was a big help.
Being aware of my *******-side has helped. I try and be aware of the triggers, and talk myself down. That's where the counseling came in mostly.
Got on a mild anti-depressant. St. John's Wort works for me. keeps me more on a even keel.
Probably the biggest factor though was just plain maturity. I'm getting mellow with age. You learn that most things just plain aren't worth getting an ulcer over.
I'm not completely cured. My biggest challenge is inept co-workers. It doesn't matter if they are under me, over me, or my equal. I have no patience with people that won't do their job, or let me do mine.
But I'm way better than I was 15 years ago

__________________
past MB rides:
'68 220D
'68 220D(another one)
'67 230
'84 SD
Current rides:
'06 Lexus RX330
'93 Ford F-250
'96 Corvette
'99 Polaris 700 RMK sled
2011 Polaris Assault
'86 Yamaha TT350(good 'ol thumper)

Irritability and anger can be a symptom of depression or anxiety, something to think about.

Ya hit that nail on the head. One of the big reason's I'm trying to move out of the rain capitol of the nation. I can't take another dark, dreary, depressing, endless winter in this damn state!
But the other factors I talked about just feed it all the more. There just is no single easy answer to the problem.

__________________
past MB rides:
'68 220D
'68 220D(another one)
'67 230
'84 SD
Current rides:
'06 Lexus RX330
'93 Ford F-250
'96 Corvette
'99 Polaris 700 RMK sled
2011 Polaris Assault
'86 Yamaha TT350(good 'ol thumper)

One short term and immediate solution I've found is physical excersise. I try to get to the gym most days during the week. When I miss more than three or so days in a row, I find that my mood gets more melancholic and depressed.

But make sure you find a long term solution-- therapy like others have used. On a personal note, I'd advise to stay away from the therapists who just tell you "the power is within you" type of treatment. There is something to be said about acknowledging a higher power.... whatever you believe it to be...

__________________

Current:
2014 VW Tiguan SEL 4Motion 43,000 miles.

2016 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport (wife's).

Past:
2006 Jetta TDI 135,970 miles. Sold Nov. '13.
1995 E-320 Special Edition. 220,200 miles. Sold Sept. '07.
1987 190-E 16 valve. 153,000 miles. Sold Feb. '06.
1980 300-D 225,000 miles. Donated to the National Kidney Foundation.
1980 240-D manual, 297,500 miles. Totaled by inattentive driver.

What you put in your body can contribute to moods swings too. Are you eating a correct diet through the day? Is there high sugar consumption? Caffeine? Junk foods? There are food allergies that can set people off too. Milk, wheat etc etc.

Perception is the key. You are in control of yourself, not other people. Nobody can 'make you' angry. You only choose that response. It really comes down to how you view the scenario at hand.

Exercise, good diet and changing my perception have changed my life by leaps and bounds over the last few years of my life. I feel good on so many different levels.

__________________
1994 C 280 117.5k, White (Good as new)
1997 Toyota Camry 149k Miles (Not so pretty anymore)

1990 190e 2.6 95k (Sold-Should not have)
1981 240d Stick ??? Miles...sold

Excellent point....Isn't the suicide rate up there in the Northwest much higher than the national average? I've heard it is...

Mike

__________________
_____
1979 300 SD
350,000 miles
_____
1982 300D-gone---sold to a buddy
_____
1985 300TD
270,000 miles
_____
1994 E320
not my favorite, but the wife wanted it

www.myspace.com/mikemover
www.myspace.com/openskystudio
www.myspace.com/speedxband
www.myspace.com/openskyseparators
www.myspace.com/doubledrivemusic

Most people like that are depressed, deeply anxious or are survivors of trauma such as child abuse, violent crime or combat. They should be seen by a professional. It's easily treatable. The 'letting steam out" thing is a myth. Whatever is bugging the guy needs to be determined by a professional, so the right treatment can be applied. Everyone gets depressed and every one gets angry once and a while, but when it is so acute it damages human relationships, it is something that will eventually eat the guy alive or cause him to do something he regrets, sometimes for many years in the confines of a jail cell. Get the guy to a shrink.

Actually Washington has one of the lowest. Suicide is more closely tied to alcholism, especially among Indians, gambling debts, and thanks to all you conservatives, poverty. The top state see-saws between those with high Indian populations and Nevada, and it is consistently high in the Rocky Mountain States:

http://www.spanusa.org/images/USrates2001.gif

http://www.a1b2c3.com/suilodge/facenc1.htm

Just couldn't resist politicizing this, could you?

Don't hijack this guy's thread.

Mike

__________________
_____
1979 300 SD
350,000 miles
_____
1982 300D-gone---sold to a buddy
_____
1985 300TD
270,000 miles
_____
1994 E320
not my favorite, but the wife wanted it

www.myspace.com/mikemover
www.myspace.com/openskystudio
www.myspace.com/speedxband
www.myspace.com/openskyseparators
www.myspace.com/doubledrivemusic

Actually, you had already hijacked it.

Diet, consumption and exercise are big parts of this. Rick's maturity angle also plays in. A very simple component is sleep. As in, the more you get above 5 hours, the better balanced we are. For every hour of sleep less than 6 it equivalent to losing 10 IQ points. That doesn't mean that for every hour of sleep over 8 we gain 10 IQ points

I'm sure I missed a political angle here somewhere.

I have a tendency to say "F*ck it" and move on if things don't go the way I planned. Meaning, I don't dwell on the past and look forward to the future.

$hit happens.

I just try to learn from my mistakes. I come from a family that had a tendency to hold onto things that really weren't important, so I learned from that I guess.

Don't worry about things you can't control.

All of them are cliches, but I believe in them and they work for me.

Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out of it alive!

__________________
Enough about me, how are you doing?

Does lowering the poverty level increase poverty assisted suicides? I mean does just knowing that you impoverished all it takes to end it all. If you need the president to provide $$ for you maybe that's why your so damn poor.

Good point, MedMech.

We could completely eliminate poverty by simply lowering the threshold. Every man a king!

The whole notion of poverty in the USA is a bogus invention, anyway. Most people who are 'poor' have food, clothing, shelter and medical care and welfare support and a regular route they follow to support agencies, NGO's and churches. Want to see real poverty, go to Hispaniola, which is probably why folks from Haiti and DR are some of teh most productive 1st generation Americans in history. Those folks know about starvation and disease.

Yeah, I know there are poor folks who need help. Functionally retarded, temporarily jobless, terminally ill, kids of loser parents. Its an easy list to write and I am in favor of giving them a hand. But most poor folks don't need help, they need to cut the carbs, take a bath, and get a job. If an illegal Haitian can make it, some lard-ass in a tenement has no excuse, IMO.

B