Anger: The Misunderstood Emotion, by Carol Tavris (TPB, 189, $1)
I remember when my relative was dying, she once screamed at me "I am not angry". I forget exactly what the conversation was about, but I remember feeling frustrated that she could not say she was angry that she was dying, and feeling awful, and that she was angry for having ALS. Everyone knows that ALS is an awful disease. Everyone knows that someone dying of ALS will be angry at dying, and from ALS. Yet my relative couldn't say the words. She couldn't even think the words, but it colored the relationships with those around her.
Soon after all this happened, I found this book. Reading it brought me comfort.
Writes Tavris, "There are different angers, involving different processes and having different consequences to our mental and physical health. No single remedy fits all. Sometimes suppressed hostility can aggravate stress and illness, but sometimes suppressed hostility is the best thing for you."
If this book, or this blog, does nothing else, hopefully it will get you to think about anger and how it affects you and the people you care about. Deal with anger, and life gets easier, at least it did for me. Good luck in your life journey. Look for this book in the self-help section, avail. 2/28.
