Breathe Magazine

What makes you angry? Rudeness, unfairness, lack of effort? Do you remember the last time you felt an intense moment of frustration, the kind that bubbles up in the blood into a towering wave of irritation and makes you want to hurl something? And when the dust had settled, did you look back and feel justified in your reaction? If the honest answer is no, don’t worry. The reality is, it’s often the small stuff that brings sweat to the brow and makes you want to scream.
Being stuck on hold on the phone, for instance. An elusive parking space. A queue jumper. Feeling the annoyance is unwarranted only makes it worse. Once the irritation has receded, shame and self-admonishments roll in to take its place. What are you doing getting so het up about some misplaced keys, when there are people the world over dealing with truly outrageous injustices?
Learning to cope with the tiny straws that break our proverbial backs might be one of life’s most helpful lessons. Micro-stressors, as they’re known, pile up. Recognising when that stack is teetering, and giving yourself the break that you need, can be the difference between letting those petty irritations breezily drift past and blowing your top. For those with a tendency to gloss over their own needs and soldier on, that might be new territory. Yet taking a little time each day to check-in – are you rested, hungry, under pressure? – can mean simmering stresses are noticed, acknowledged and given a chance to dissipate.
No doubt, there’ll be times when tiredness, lateness, sadness makes keeping the pile from toppling an impossible ask. And that’s fine.
The truth is, we’re all less than perfect, and managing anger is hard.
Let’s try not to sweat it.