With every passing day, more and more anger issues are being reported worldwide. A survey was done by Mental Health Organisation in 2008. According to the reported survey, 64% of the people agreed that they are facing anger issues and blowing a fuse within no time. Do you also want to know how does martial arts help with anger management?
We need to control anger issues, as they are bad for your health. But how? No one has control over their anger naturally and can lose their temper in less than a second. If you are also coming across a similar issue, and trying hard to control your rage issues, fortunately, you have clicked the right tab!
In the present era, everyone is seeking medications and opting for relaxers to cope with anger and anxiety issues. Through this article, you will get to know how does martial arts help with anger management.
So, without any further delay, let’s go through the details!
How Anger Affects People
Anger is your gross reaction to a situation due to the intense fury and rage you experience. Different people express it in different forms. Some respond by shouting, others by crying, and still, there are others who bottle up masks of calmness but feel hurt deep inside, leading to stress and anxiety. The common symptoms and effects encountered by getting angry again and again of health are:
- Tingling
- High blood pressure
- Chest pain
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Emotional imbalance
Causes:
There are various causes that trigger the anger issue disorder in humans, varying from person to person. However, according to researchers, drivers and people too involved in social media face more anger issues.
Does Martial Arts Help with Anger Management?
What can better satisfy that whole equation than the statistics that:
- Every 1 in 5 relationships ends due to uncontrollable anger issues.
- Every 1 in 10 claims to have no control over his/her rage and anger.
As a result, they have more chances of becoming drug addicts and use them to feel relaxed. In fact, according to studies, people with anger issues have 2.7 times more viable to smoke or drink.
So, why not control this all using some physical exercise like martial arts? It will be beneficial in building your body’s core strength as well as help in mind anger management.
How Does Martial Arts Help With Anger Management?
Almost all martial arts ranging from aikido to Brazilian jiu jitsu, help to control your anger by using various anger management strategies. The most substantial evidence of martial arts assisting in coping with stress and anger is the study done in March 2012, which showed that students who learned and practiced karate lost their temper less frequently and knew how to control it.
How Martial Arts help with Anger Management of Mind?
Following are the fundamental ways in which true martial arts can help those struggling with anger control issues:
Build Focus and Attention
The best part of martial art that plays a prime role in helping you cope with anger issues is that you need to be entirely focused. Yes, martial arts let it be karate, kendo, or any other type requires your full attention and focus at a time. You need to focus on your body positioning, opponent, strategies, and many other things. So, all the things that come to your mind are directly or indirectly related to the particular form of martial arts you are practicing. Therefore, you don’t have time to think about the thing or fact you are angry about. Isn’t it so cool?
Whenever you are angry, all you need to do is practice a few karate moves or jiu jitsu, and all your anger will vanish.
The reason behind this is that our mind operates in a way that it can concentrate on only one specific thing at a time with 100% attention. If you have learned any form of martial arts or attended a class, you will be well up with the fact that it demands your body and mind cooperation and attention.
The government of Western Australia advises people to involve themselves in physical activities. It helps to handle stress and anger. So, instead of sleeping or doing random things, it is better to learn and practice martial arts.
Mind Over Emotions
Martial arts like taekwondo, karate, etc., help you master your emotions and rely on your mind rather than the abrupt emotions coming in a particular scenario. As a result, they develop mental and emotional stability in you. As a result, it lessens the ratio of aggressive behavior and reactions. Saying that martial arts are a workout for strengthening both your mind and body won’t be wrong at all.
Basically, martial arts dissolve strong reactions and emotions by helping you learn the trick of converting all those negative vibes and energy in practicing any powerful boxing stroke. Even using a punching bag for anger management issues is quite successful. According to science, punching bags release endorphins. These are happy hormones in our body and hence help control your anger more than you can imagine!
So, funnel all your energy due to anger into any tick or move of martial arts and release all the stress.
Discipline and Self-Control:
Another role of Martial arts in dealing with anger is that it helps develop discipline. In martial arts like Brazilian jiu jitsu, you often find yourself choked or pinned down. In such situations, everyone gets frustrated, angry, and loses his senses. But that is where martial arts rules come in. Yes, you can’t break the rule or use any wrong trick to hit your opponent, no matter how much you wish to. That is how you develop control over your emotions and yourself. Ultimately, it helps in one way or another in life situations.
In martial arts like boxing, self-control is very important for the safety of you and your opponent. That is why once you have mastered any martial art, you get to know the core importance of self-control in every field of life.
Anger Management and self-control are more or less the same things. Once you have developed control over yourself, you can easily handle any situation.
Helps in Stress Management:
Last but not least, Martial arts helps in reducing your stress level and anger. Instead of relating, let’s talk more logically at this point. So, whenever stressed, our body releases hormones like adrenaline, cortisol, and non-adrenaline.
But when our body gets involved in physical exercise like martial arts, we burn the hormones mentioned. Instead, our body releases happy pill hormones like endorphins, serotonin, and dopamine. They develop a sense of well-being and happiness in our bodies, due to which there is a significant lowering in our stress. And no human can be angry when he is feeling serene and satisfied from inside.
Does Jiu Jitsu Help you Cope with Anger and Stress Issues?
When talking about jiu jitsu, particularly Brazilian jiu jitsu, it is a great way to develop anger management strategies in yourself. It trains the person not to attack an unprepared opponent at all. So in this way, you develop a grip on how to cut down the negative feelings.
What is the Best Form of Martial Arts to Control my Anger?
Although all forms of martial arts are effective in controlling anger. But when it comes to choosing one, boxing is to be the most effective one, as it allows you to punch bag for anger management. In this way, you can release all the anger by hitting it again and again with all your power and strokes. Moreover, many athletes claim Tai Chi is an effective means of developing self-control in them. Tai Chi is a soft art that focuses only on meditation, relaxation, and deep breathing.
Conclusion- The bottom line!
It is perfectly fine to get angry occasionally. There are very few people who actually get angry once in a blue moon. But if you find yourself frustrated and angry at every second thing, opt for any form of martial art. It will help you deal with it in a better way. Not only does martial arts help with anger management, but it also develops a sense of discipline and well-being in us. So, let’s find some martial arts trainers near us and benefit from it.
Chris Bent
Chris Bent is a professional MMA Trainer who has expertise in both Martial Arts and Karate and he loves to teach Men, Women and Kids.