Understanding Different Types of Anger Disorders

Whether you call them anger issues, explosive moments, or angry outbursts, dealing with anger can feel overwhelming. On one end of the spectrum of varying types of anger disorders, a person may want to feel heard or just lack the patience for a specific situation. At the other end of the spectrum, different types of anger disorders can be debilitating – damaging relationships, jobs, and a person’s self-esteem.

How to treat different types of anger disorders varies depending on the clinician and how progressed the anger disorders are. But we want to encourage you that there is hope. You can live a lifestyle free from outbursts, without fear of exploding in anger.

If you live with someone who you believe may have an anger disorder, there is hope for that person and your circumstance. Never remain in a situation where you feel unsafe. Tell a trusted professional or a loved one who can help you get to a safe place before you try to help your loved one with an anger disorder.

Not sure if you or a loved one has an anger disorder? Keep reading. See how many of these symptoms and signs sound familiar. (Warning: If you have a background of trauma, this article may be triggering. Please use discernment before reading it.) It is important to note that anger itself is not a disorder. It is a natural emotional response. Anger is also an instinctive response to threats.

But when anger leads to hurtful responses, reactions, and/or physical harm, it is a problem that needs to be addressed. You or someone you love may have an anger disorder if controlling your anger responses is difficult, if you or your loved one struggles to transition from anger to peace, or if you or your loved one becomes dangerous due to anger.

Three types of anger disorders

Intermittent Explosive Disorder

Repetitious episodes of violent, aggressive, or impulsive behavior characterize this disorder. It is sometimes called volatile anger.

This person’s angry response may seem inconsistent and out of touch with the reality of the situation. For example, slamming a fist through the door about a fender bender that can easily be fixed could be a sign of intermittent explosive disorder.

Another illustration is spilled milk. Someone who doesn’t suffer from IED may simply get frustrated, find a paper towel, and clean up the milk. A person with IED, on the other hand, may throw the empty glass of milk across the room.

Repeated verbal tirades that aren’t merited by the circumstance also illustrate this type of anger disorder. A person with IED may struggle with road rage, domestic violence, and/or verbal abuse in the home or at work.

If these intermittent behaviors are keeping you or someone else in your life from a fulfilling, peace-filled life, it’s time to seek help from a counselor who can help. Even though these people’s outbursts may last only for thirty minutes or less, they can be generally disagreeable, angry people to live or work with.

Sometimes, it’s hard to know if a person has this disorder – especially since their outbursts can be frequent or separated by weeks or months without any aggressive behavior. Regardless of how frequently they show signs of these outbursts, people with Intermittent Explosive Disorder usually erupt without warning.

Their behavior takes co-workers, classmates, teachers, parents, spouses, and children by surprise. Angry episodes can be exacerbated if the person also suffers from depression or is under a significant amount of chronic stress.

If you or a loved one exhibits tremors, tingling, heightened energy, palpitations, racing thoughts, chest tightness, or rage for seemingly insignificant reasons, it’s time to find a counselor who is trained to help you or your loved one. The professional licensed counselors in our offices will not be judgmental or shame anyone who exhibits these symptoms.

These counselors simply want to help you and your loved ones live full lives with restored personal and professional relationships.

Oppositional Defiant Disorder

Typically diagnosed in children or teens, this disorder is characterized by repeated patterns of anger, defiance, disobedience, and vindictiveness toward a parent or multiple authority figures.

This is a disorder that can be difficult to diagnose because it can run concurrently with other mental health issues. However, if your child or teen is often angry or resentful, loses his or her temper easily and frequently, argues with adults regularly, is easily annoyed, refuses to comply with adults’ requests or rules, and often blames others for his or her behavior, it may be time to consider the possibility of ODD.

The diagnostic manual says that these symptoms need to persist over six or more months to be categorized as Oppositional Defiant Disorder.

Every child experiences transitions throughout childhood that make him or her more resistant to obedience, but children with oppositional defiant disorder repeatedly struggle with anger, defiance, and behavior that often disrupts the family or their classroom climate. There are varying degrees of ODD, though.

Mild oppositional defiant disorder means that the behavior is only present in one specific setting, such as only at home or only at school. Moderate ODD means a child exhibits symptoms in at least two settings. Severe Oppositional Defiant Disorder means that a child shows signs in three or more different settings.

Trying to talk to your child about the issues you see probably won’t result in a resolution. He or she may shift the blame, angrily respond in defense of his or her behavior or complain about unreasonable expectations that are placed upon him or her.

Seek help for your child if your child is showing signs of disruptive behavior in one or more settings and/or if you are concerned about your ability to parent your child because of his disruptive behavior. It’s important to find a psychologist who is trained in disruptive behavior problems with children. The counselors in our offices can help.

Inward Aggression

When someone struggles with inward aggression, he or she may not show obvious external anger cues.

This is because a person with inward aggression tendencies primarily struggles with anger against himself or herself. Some outward signs of inward aggression are when a person cuts or harms himself or herself, denies himself or herself food and other necessities for life and happiness or shames himself or herself using negative self-talk.

A person who struggles with inward aggression is almost always suffering from an ability to control anger in some way; it may be a reaction to anger from trauma experienced earlier in life or a feeling of being out of control in his or her circumstances. If you think you may be struggling with inward aggression, it’s important to know that you are not alone.

If you or a loved one is experiencing self-punishing thoughts or behaviors, it’s important to find a caring, trusted counselor who can listen well and provide a supportive recovery plan.

Treatment options

Whether you or a loved one has Intermittent Explosive Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, or struggles with internal aggression, treatment can involve a variety of solutions.

First, your counselor will ask about your health history. It’s important to be honest with the counselor, knowing that everything you share is confidential. Based on your unique health history, he or she may ask a series of follow-up questions to be able to give you an accurate diagnosis.

Some questions may include:

• Describe a recent situation where you feel your response to anger concerned you or someone you love.
• How long have you been experiencing these negative behaviors or thoughts?
• Describe what is going on in your thought life when you are feeling out of control or angry.
• What was or is your childhood like? What kind of experiences are you having, or have you had with parental figures and authority figures in the past?

Second, it is important to remember that a trained counselor is there to help. He or she is not out to “get” you or prove that someone you love is unstable. He or she is there to help you learn how to cope with life so that you can live in freedom, without fear or debilitating thoughts, and so you can have joyful relationships.

Third, a mixture of treatment options is available. Some treatment options include cognitive behavioral therapy, family therapy, medicine, and in some cases, group therapy. Your counselor will work with you to find the best combination of treatment that gets you back on track to experience a positive, hopeful outlook in life.

To find out more about the varying types of anger disorders, you can call our offices, or request a counselor online via our secure website.