When you’re angry, your body releases stress hormones like adrenaline, which can cause your heart to beat faster and your blood pressure to rise temporarily. Over time, this can contribute to hypertension or exacerbate existing hypertension.
Managing anger is important for overall heart health. Techniques like deep breathing, meditation, regular exercise, and seeking support from friends, family, or a therapist can help manage anger and reduce its impact on hypertension.
But did you know that a simple act of disposing a paper with your thoughts written on it could be a way to eliminate anger.
A recent study published in April 2024 explored the effective of this approach in the neutralization of anger.
Participants received a handwritten insulting comment in response to the opinions about social problems. It was noted that all the participants felt angry after receiving the comment. They were then asked to write down the cause and their thoughts about the insulting comment they received. These participants were split into two groups. The first group was asked to dispose the note, either by disposing it into a trash can o shredding it. The other group was asked to keep it in a file on the desk.
It was found that the first group who disposed of the note showed a reduction in anger.
However, a few factors could possibly affect the effectiveness of this approach. One of which is the mood of the person when they are writing down their feelings and thoughts – whether it’s done in a cool manner or if he or she feels agitated – can also affect how the individual manages the anger.
In a separate study [1]done to measure the impact on anger management training on mild essential hypertensive patients shows participants exhibiting significantly lower casual diastolic blood pressure after a 6-week program in anger management.
So the next time you feel angry, do try these methods out! Not only will you feel better, you will have better reading for your blood pressure too!
[1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8904726/
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About Dr Adrian Mondry
Dr Adrian Mondry is a Hypertension Specialist accredited by the German Hypertension League in Singapore. He was previously a senior consultant in the department of medicine at the National University Hospital and Ng Teng Fong General Hospital (NTFGH), Dr Mondry has more than 30 years of experience in the field of internal medicine.
Dr Adrian Mondry is recognised for his leadership and contributions in establishing the dedicated hypertension clinic within the National University Health System and fast-track deep vein thrombosis service at NTFGH.
Dr Adrian Mondry is fluent in English, German and French.
About Kaizen Medical
Kaizen Medical is located at Mount Elizabeth Novena Specialist Centre, Suite 11-57.
At Kaizen, we provide in depth health care to patients with multi-organs diseases; tackling undifferentiated presentations that cannot be easily assigned to a single organ.
