The Art Of Tammy Bailey AT FORTY FIVE Magazine Issue R 2021 12
A magazine for women 45+ who want to own aging with spirit and joy. For those of us rediscovering who we are & exploring what we want next. We want more; health, wealth, happiness, & fulfillment. Join women around the world navigating the best years yet.
A magazine for women 45+ who want to own aging with spirit and joy. For those of us rediscovering who we are & exploring what we want next. We want more; health, wealth, happiness, & fulfillment. Join women around the world navigating the best years yet.
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It wasn’t until I was a student in an experiential<br />
counseling program that I learned there were<br />
healthy and unhealthy expressions of anger. At<br />
first, I was baffled by this idea. It boggled my<br />
mind. It was like someone telling me the sky<br />
was purple and not blue as I had thought.<br />
<strong>The</strong>n I felt a huge relief as though the world<br />
had just been lifted off my shoulder. I could<br />
finally learn how to release years of built-up<br />
resentment and rage in a healthy way. Mostly, I<br />
had directed my rage and hatred toward<br />
myself. Self-blame, self-punishment, and selfdestructive<br />
behaviors were my coping<br />
mechanisms. In that moment of realization,<br />
while sitting in the counseling program, I had<br />
hope that one day I would be free of it. I was<br />
determined to release every last bit of anger<br />
and resentment. It was interfering with my<br />
ability to love and receive love.<br />
So what does a healthy expression of anger<br />
look like? This is a question I tried on for years<br />
personally as well as exploring it with my<br />
clients. I have learned that even if we give<br />
ourselves permission to express our anger<br />
verbally at the moment that the energy of<br />
anger can be processed in as little as fifteen<br />
seconds. Something as simple as saying, “I am<br />
feeling angry because ... ” is sometimes<br />
enough to clear it from our mind and body.<br />
It is important to just let the thoughts rise up<br />
and out as words without censoring them and<br />
feel the emotions behind the words. When we<br />
do this, the words we say to ourselves are<br />
meant to feel emotionally charged; that is how<br />
we free ourselves from the anger and upset<br />
behind them. Here are some examples of this<br />
exercise; you can do it on your own.<br />
“I feel angry because no one seems to care<br />
about my needs and everyone is so selfish.”<br />
"I feel angry because my parents never loved<br />
me the way I wanted them to.”<br />
“I feel angry because my boyfriend is cheating<br />
on me.”<br />
“I feel angry because my life is falling apart.”<br />
“I feel angry because no one listens to me.”<br />
Owning how we feel is empowering. <strong>The</strong>re will<br />
be times when we also need to voice our<br />
upset or anger to others, which means finding<br />
the courage to have those sweaty-palm<br />
conversations with the individual directly.<br />
Alternatively, it could mean talking about how<br />
you feel with a trustworthy friend who can<br />
hold space for you to express yourself.