Strategic Psychotherapy focuses on how you do anger rather than why you do anger.

Control

The foundation of most of our emotional problems is the perception of control.  Mainly trying to control what we can’t, which is anything external to ourselves.  Paradoxically while we try to control the external, we fail to control the internal, which is what thoughts and feelings to pay attention to and when to react or not react.

Therefore, strategic psychotherapy seeks to teach you the skill of what you do control and what you don’t control.

Global Thinking

Poor process means you have no steps to achieve what you want to do, which can cause you to feel angry about a situation that you are struggling to achieve or change.  People with anger management problems fail to notice the steps needed to take to change a situation the creates and provokes anger.

Learning that life is a process to learn is a valuable skill that minimises frustration and anger.

Internal Orientation

People with anger management problems focus on their internal thoughts and use those thoughts and the feelings they produce as an indicator of what is real in the world.  When using their own internal map of the world, feelings and thoughts can be distorted, deleted, and generalized to make them fit with their own beliefs.  When another person has a different view of the world or does something different to them, this results in conflict. 

When we think others should do the same as we do, this is called self-referencing.

Judging the world by how we think it should be, not how it is, can fuel anger and cause angry outbursts. 

Developing the skill to be more outside of yourself will allow you to see the world from the perspective of other people and allow you to feel less persecuted.

Ineffective Compartmentalisation

Can’t park a thought? That’s ineffective compartmentalisation.

Anger produces emotion and has energy and in context is useful.  It can save your life.  But excessively thinking about something which happened the previous day or week ramps anger up and turn mountains into molehills.

It is useful when dealing with anger management issues to learn how to be more focused on the here and now in the right context but also realising and acknowledging future consequences. 

Low Tolerance for Uncertainty

When you don’t have the answer right to what the future holds or what an event may mean can cause uncertainty which in turn for some people result in fear and anger.  Stewing on things that bother you in the search for an answer holds no advantage in the absence of any more information.

Being ok with not knowing what the answer to a question or uncertain event is a great skill to learn in effective anger management therapy.

Strategic psychotherapy is more than just anger management counseling; it is actual anger management therapy that helps you to develop the skills in how to effectively manage your anger management issues.