Like many people, you might also be confused about anger and temperament. Many people assume anger and temperament to be synonyms; however, they are pretty different from one another. One of the reasons people confuse anger with temperament is that they mostly co-occur in a very short time of a threatening situation, making it difficult to differentiate between them.

Major Differences

Anger is basically a feeling that you get when things don’t go your way, and you feel unpleased or antagonistic towards a person or thing. Anger is essential because you are supposed to feel angry in certain situations and act accordingly. However, most of the time, it is better to control your anger.

Anger is a feeling; feelings do not define your behaviors if you have better control over them. Temperament is your general tendency to act on a particular type of feeling. A person with a bad temperament is habitual of behaving aggressively when in a rage and creating destruction around themselves.

Short Temperament Issues

Imagine being stuck in traffic for hours and a hasty car driver tries to cut the lane and move ahead. You will start experiencing a spike in your blood pressure before you even notice it. Your overall temperature will rise a bit, and a boost of negative energy will be felt throughout your body. You may unleash your rage by yelling at the driver out of your window.

Everyone faces situations daily when they feel highly aggressive; however, if your anger outbursts are frequent and people around you have started telling you that you overreact, you are probably dealing with temperament issues. People with temperament problems usually have insight that their short temperament affects their relationships with people around them. Feeling aggressive quickly can have a deteriorating effect on your health and career.

Identifying Temperament Issues

Effective management of a short temperament requires observing and recognizing the symptoms and triggers. Aggressive tendencies strengthen over time if left untreated, and you may start to act out on little or no triggers.

You need to have a look at short temperament-related physical and psychological symptoms. When you begin to feel a loss of control, an increase in your heartbeat, irritability, racing thoughts, and an urge to yell, it’s time to do something before it’s too late.

Disastrous Impact

Your short temperament has a range of ways to impact you. A study conducted in 2010 claims that a short temperament makes you more prone to drinking excessive amounts of caffeine and substance abuse. When angry, your fight or flight response is activated in the body, and excessive activation causes energy loss and anxiety.

When stress hormones are excessively released as a result of your aggression, it leads to lifelong health issues like anxiety, depression, migraines, digestive problems, cardiovascular problems, sleeping issues, and stroke.

Chaining the Devil

Thankfully, you don’t have to deal with your short temper throughout your life because there are effective strategies to handle your temperament. Most importantly, if self-help techniques fail to control your temperament adequately, you must consult a healthcare practitioner that’s an expert in dealing with aggressive individuals. Don’t keep trying self-help techniques if they do not provide adequate results within two weeks, and consult a health practitioner before you face any consequences.

Practicing mindfulness and incorporating it into your routine can help you understand triggers and reactivity levels. Whenever you feel angry, just find a quiet room and sit on a comfortable couch. Close your eyes, take some deep breaths, and notice your physical sensations. Tell yourself that you feel relaxed, so your body also calms down. As you exhale your breath, think that the thoughts making you angry are also released.

Once you have identified situations that trigger your temperament come up with solutions and alternative courses of action. You can list things that make you angry and ask your peers for advice. Sometimes your loved ones can come up with innovative solutions to your issues.

Conclusion

Understanding and differentiating between anger and temperament are essential, so you can recognize them and get a hold of your emotions before it’s too late. Self-help techniques can help, but if they fail to benefit you, you must consult a psychologist or counselor for help.