Dr. John Quoted in Article on Anger in U.S. News and World Report

“Anger, like experiencing anxiety or stress, can serve a useful purpose, spurring change or action, such as when conflict – approached in a respectful manner – improves the quality of a relationship. But in other cases, the frequency, duration or intensity of anger can make it problematic, notes Dr. John Schinnerer, an anger management coach in Danville, California, and a consultant to the Pixar movie “Inside Out,” which brings a child’s various emotions to life through different characters.

Schinnerer views anger dynamically, not only as an emotion, but also as a mood and, for some, even a personality trait. In most instances, the emotional angry response, like getting mad in the moment when you get cut off in traffic, should be relatively short-lived. Ideally, the emotion should pass in a few minutes, Schinnerer says; though people can hold onto anger over past transgressions for days, months or even years. But mood is different. “Moods tend to last longer, and I think of them as lower intensity,” he says. “Irritability is like low-level intensity anger sort of stretched thin over time. And moods don’t necessarily need a cause; they just are – they kind of come and go like waves.” Then there are people who seem to be hostile by nature. “Hostility has been shown to be a personality trait of some people, and it’s a longstanding trait that involves beliefs that others are unworthy or likely to be sources of frustration,” he says. “So they tend to be suspicious, cynical, jealous, bitter, and that’s been linked to anger and aggression. So these people tend to evaluate others more harshly, and they’re slower to positive judgment.”

Schroeder goes on to write…

“The list of ways chronic anger can affect a person’s well-being – and even put the health of others in peril – is long, Schinnerer says. “It’s been linked to obesity, low self-esteem, migraines, drug and alcohol addiction, depression, sexual performance problems, increased heart attack risk, lower-quality relationships, higher probability of abusing others emotionally or physically or both … higher blood pressure and stroke,” he notes.”