Learn tools and techniques to help clients address their anger and anxiety. Many of these activities can also be facilitated by parents with their children at home. Listen to this presentation on Counselor Toolbox Podcast, available on any podcasting app.
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1. Journey to Recovery
Individual and Group Exercises
for Anger and Anxiety
Dr. Dawn-Elise Snipes
Executive Direcor, AllCEUs Counselor Continuing Education
Podcast Host: Counselor Toolbox
AllCEUs Unlimited CEUs $59 | Addiction Counselor Certificate Training $149 | Specialty Certificates $89 1
2. Objectives
Identify the purpose of anger and anxiety
Explore the effects of anger and anxiety
Learn new activities to help clients learn to
identify and cope with anger and anxiety
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3. What is the Purpose
Anger (Fight) and anxiety (Flee) protect you from
perceived threats by alerting you there MIGHT be a
problem
Have you ever gotten angry or stressed out about
something just to find out that it wasn’t a big deal?
Problems
Based on prior learning experiences (but life changes)
Unsafe situations
Need for someone’s approval
May be overgeneralized (all or nothing)
Dogs barking
Semis
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4. What is the Purpose
Problems
May be the result of transference
First love
Worst boss
May simply be inaccurate (Fire alarm)
Car backfiring
Sean’s “paint”
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5. Effects
How does anger or anxiety affect you:
Physically: Sleep, pain, GI, immunity
Emotionally: Regret, guilt, feeling helpless
Socially: Fear vs. respect, negative impact on
relationships
Occupationally: How you work with others, customer
service
Spiritually: Your sense of connectedness to and impact
within the world, karma
Environmentally: Break stuff, holes in walls, throw out
things impulsively
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6. Anger
Since anger protects people and it often results
from application of prior knowledge or
experiences, then it can be supposed that people
with a lot of anger may have been exposed to
significant threats (traumas) in their past
When you have a hammer, every problem looks
like a nail
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7. Anger and Anxiety Triggers
The Alphabet List
A= Attitude
B= Bullying
C= Creating drama
D= Disagreeing
E= Expecting too much
F= Failing to keep a promise
G= …
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8. Anger and Anxiety Interventions
Recognize anger and anxiety as a protective
response based on that persons experiences and
worldview.
In what way did the current situation make the person
feel unsafe emotionally, interpersonally, physically or
remind them of a time he or she was unsafe?
What emotions were triggered by this event and what
vulnerabilities or skill deficits contributed to the event?
In what way did the situation trigger a sense or
memory of loss?
How does the persons experience of the event alter
his/her future?
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10. Anger and Anxiety Interventions
Identify 2 ways you could deal with the following symptoms, why they
might occur and why it is important to recovery
Beach ball
Jenga (card draw)
Hat draw (same cards from Jenga)
Symptoms
Always feeling worried or stressed out
Insomnia
Fatigue
Shortness of breath
Muscle tension
Headaches
Irritability
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11. Anger and Anxiety Interventions
Anxiety/Anger graphic novel or skit
Anxiety/Anger says…
Evidence for and against
Anger/anxiety thermometer
Vulnerability predictor/prevention
Handling criticism (role play)
Worry stone or beads
Worry box
Positive writing
Anger “Onion”
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12. Anger and Anxiety Interventions
Hidden Heart
Fill a ziplock baggie with slips that tell about all of your hurts and
anger (This is your heart)
Put the little bag inside of a paper lunch bag. Write on the outside
all the ways they present themselves to the world to hide what is
hidden on the inside.
For kids: Anger Tornado
RELAX Jar: Using beads with the letters R-E-L-A-X and other
small beads and sequins, fill a small jar with rice. Leave a little
air at the top so as it is rotated, the rice will slide around inside
revealing the letter beads and sequins. When the person gets
angry, she/he can turn the jar until finding all the letters that
spell relax. (more resources here https://www.creativecounseling101.com/anger-
management.html)
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13. Anger and Anxiety Interventions
Hidden Heart
Fill a ziplock baggie with slips that tell about all of
your hurts and anger (This is your heart)
Put the little bag inside of a paper lunch bag. Write on
the outside all the ways they present themselves to the
world to hide what is hidden on the inside.
No Rewards
What is going on with them
Role play an incident that triggers anger with neck
cards
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14. Anger and Anxiety Interventions
How can you use mindfulness to start to break
that habit?
I am angry/anxious.
What am I angry/anxious about?
Is this actually a threat to me in the present moment?
What is the best response in this situation to help me
achieve my goals
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15. Prevention
Reduce stimulants
Get enough rest
Strive for work/life balance (add fun)
Keep blood sugar stable
Be aware of your triggers
Environmental
Situational/interpersonal
Have a plan
Get support
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16. Emergency Planning
How can you get safe?
Who can you call or text?
Strategies can you use to help you get into your
wise mind?
Why is it important to you to manage these
feelings?
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17. Summary
Anger and anxiety are normal emotions that help people
survive.
Answers can often be found by asking: “What happened to this
person that would trigger this reaction?”
Situations that trigger anger and anxiety often involve a sense
of being unsafe, a loss of something, emotions that are unable
to be handled effectively, and an alteration of how that person
envisions the future.
Problems arise when anger and anxiety are misinterpreted or
the person does not have the skills to deal with the problem
Anger is not a simple emotion, it often covers up shame,
embarrassment, guilt and/or anxiety.
By helping people identify the roots of their anger and more
effective strategies, they can be empowered to reduce the
frequency and intensity of these emotions and more effectively
cope when they do arise.
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