Eileen Lichtenstein’s Blog

Here is a wonderful quote from Leonard Cohen that was presented at a training I attended to become certified to teach anger management:

“Ring the bells that still can ring!
Forget your perfect offering!
There is a crack in  everything!
That’s how the light gets in!”

There is usually no need for perfection 🙂

Here’s a “take-away” from this training:  Ask yourself  “The Big Question” whenever you become angry:

“What do I need right now to make it OK and to be healthy.”

It’s the “right now” part that can stop someone from taking drastic anger steps- ie if the issue is a bad driver who cut you off you can simply change lanes and stay away from him instead of getting into a rage .

The same principle applies to a person who is really “annoying” on line at the store, at home, at the office, etc. Leave for a time out or change locations and “breathe” for stress release: inhale from your nose and longer exhale from mouth.