Filled with rage? You might be
filled with illness, too. As Dr. Oz
explains, there's a link between
your mental health and your physical
well-being.
I could tell an angry person
to relax, but that would be like
telling a paralyzed person to jump
-- it would only frustrate him more.
Just be careful about your anger. Of
all the characteristics you could
have, it's the one we're finding to
be most clearly correlated with
physical illness. A little bit is
fine. It's a natural, biological
response, and infrequent outbursts
-- even severe ones --
shouldn't be a problem. Consistent
anger, however, can be dangerous.
When you get angry, your adrenal
glands release epinephrine and
norepinephrine, your fight-or-flight
hormones. They tell your body that
it's under stress, and in response,
it tenses up. Constant tension has
been linked to more obvious issues
like high blood pressure,
arrhythmia, and heart attacks, but
new studies are also finding
connections with cholesterol and
lung disease. So if you like the
idea of living past 40 , consider
these coping techniques. And try to
relax.
Release
Lashing out actually adds more
tension to your body. Instead, do
something with that energy. Go for a
run. Do push-ups. If exercise isn't
possible at the moment, try deep
breathing. Push your belly button
out as you inhale and pull it toward
your spine as you exhale.
Empathy
If you understand the circumstances
behind someone's behavior -- true or
not -- it becomes less of an
affront. When someone cuts you off
in traffic, consider why he might be
in a rush. Maybe he's late for his
daughter's first piano recital.
Which is also her last, because
she's dying.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
A counselor asks you to keep a
thought record: For two days, every
time something pisses you off, you
write it down. This helps identify
what angers you. (There's usually a
pattern.) After you isolate the
cause, the therapist helps you deal
with it.
Medication
Most drugs, like antipsychotics,
antidepressants, and beta-blockers,
slow everything down and make you
less reactive. But they're not
solving the problem; they're just
covering it. And while they can
treat aggressive atients, there's
only weak evidence that they treat
anger well.
Self-Medication
Having a drink when you're angry can
be a good thing, because alcohol
calms your brain's executive center
-- its reactionary autopilot. Just
limit your consumption, and maybe do
it at home. One drink can mellow
you, but there's a reason that 100
percent of bar fights occur in bars.
Cold cuts, spinach, strawberries:
To stabilize blood sugar, which
can affect mood.
Green tea: To increase your
brain's alpha waves, which aid
relaxation.
Salmon: To keep brain cells
healthy, which can help reduce
aggression.
Mehmet Oz is a heart surgeon and
the coauthor of You: The Smart
Patient and You: On a Diet.
