Stress Mastery: The Art of Coping Gracefully

Coping with Anger

Reframing Revisited

We have found that the most effective way of beginning to use anger, rather than be used up by it, not surprisingly involves beginning with the Master Strategy. First, remember to breathe. Take a couple of deep diaphragmatic breaths and then shift your attention to your muscles, particularly the muscles in the shoulders, neck, and jaw. Take a moment to relax these. Then assume the witnessing stance. Look at the situation from the outside. Ask yourself, “How can I look at this differently?” We talked about reframes in Chapter 6. Reframing is a powerful method for dealing effectively with anger. We would like to offer you a couple of reframes we have found particularly useful for working through anger.

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