The American Psychiatric Association has officially determined that anger is a lifestyle issue (learned behavior) rather than a mental or nervous disorder. Therefore, an intervention consisting of counseling and psychotherapy, or medication is not entirely appropriate for addressing anger.
The American Association of Anger Management Providers, the official voice of professional providers of anger management, offers the following definition of anger management: “Anger management is a class which teaches skills in recognizing and managing stress and anger, teaching skills in increasing empathy/emotional intelligence and enhancing assertive communication.” In addition, the AAAMP defines anger as a normal emotion which becomes a problem when it:
• Is too intense • Lasts too long • Occurs too frequently • Is harmful to oneself or others • Leads to aggression or violence • Destroys work or personal relationships
Anger is a normal emotion. It is important to know how to manage it. Our training, Managing Anger: From Chaos to Clarity, focuses on teaching the skills necessary to meet the challenges presented in a licensed facility, which include anger management, stress management, communication and emotional intelligence. It prepares staff to:
• Recognize and manage their own anger • Address anger issues with clients • Increase self awareness, empathy and emotional intelligence • Minimize violent or unacceptable behavior • Communicate effectively in high stress situations; identify thefour major styles of communications •Create an action plan for change
The training offers a balanced approach for those who internalize anger as well as those who act it out.
Keeping Cool in Crisis: Non-Violent Crisis Intervention
As a compliment to the anger management course, this four hour class helps participants recognize early signs of potential crisis, intervene promptly and effectively prevent or reduce disruptive and violent behavior. This, in turn, assists to increase staff confidence in managing all stages of crisis in a professional and safe manner. The course outlines the five stages of crisis development and identifies basic skills for professional intervention and effective modes of communication. Staff will learn to:
• Understand how crisis develops and how interventions are adapted • Recognize how they can cause as well as avert crisis • Increase their empathy and professionalism toward clients andstaff • Utilize nonverbal as well as verbal techniques to reduce acting-out • Set effective limits to control verbal and physical crisis • Learn to provide postvention support as well as intervention • Feel safer and more competent in handling crisis • Communicate in a more effective manner
In addition to Anger Management and Non-Violent Crisis Intervention courses, Mind Body Soulutions Training and Consulting Services offers tailored training and comprehensive consultation, specializing in the design and implementation of holistic community-based programs and living environments. For more information, contact us at Info@MindBodySoulutions.com or call (408) 905-4794.