Therapy for Anger
Therapy for Anger in Hampshire
Anger is a natural human emotion, often triggered when we are hurt, threatened, frustrated, or powerless. On its own, anger isn’t bad, it can even be protective. But when it’s suppressed for too long or expressed in unhelpful ways, it can become overwhelming and lead to destructive or explosive outbursts.
Chronic anger can strain relationships, affect your physical health, and make it difficult to function in your life. If you feel like your anger is out of control or affecting your quality of life, you’re not alone and you don’t have to stay stuck in this pattern.
Through anger management therapy with me, Dr Sonney Gullu-McPhee, you can begin to understand the roots of your anger and develop healthier ways of expressing and regulating it. I integrate Schema Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Compassion Focused Therapy, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy to help you build emotional awareness, regulate your reactions, and foster a more compassionate relationship with yourself.
Are you ready to take the first step toward managing your anger and creating more calm in your life? Join me for a 15-minute complimentary consultation, which you can book via phone or email, or by filling out a form.
Understanding Anger
Anger is a strong emotional response to perceived injustice, threat, or frustration. It can arise when we feel hurt, rejected, powerless, or treated unfairly and it often signals an unmet need or violated boundary.
Anger arrives without warning and brings various negative emotions to the surface. There are all sorts of reasons for feeling angry, from someone cutting you off in traffic to experiencing a relationship breakup.
What Causes Anger?
You may have certain expectations, particularly unrealistic ones, from someone or something, and when they don’t meet your expectations, you’re likely to feel disappointed and frustrated, sparking anger.
It’s natural to feel angry when you feel like your safety is being threatened or endangered. Whether someone is invading your personal space or making aggressive gestures, it pushes your body into survival mode, releasing stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.
You can also feel threatened due to insecurity or the feeling of not being good enough.
Having too much on your plate and not being able to keep up can also lead to feelings of anger.
You might be struggling with anger due to a demanding profession, chaotic home life, an illness or disability, or financial problems. Being constantly overwhelmed can lead to frustrations, pushing you to lash out in anger at the people around you.
Not being able to change or do anything about an overwhelming situation can lead to anger. Feeling that you have no control over situations can make you feel powerless, fuelling anger.
If you feel that you’re not being heard or your opinion doesn’t matter, this can give rise to feelings of hurt and powerlessness. You may respond in anger to validate these feelings and regain a sense of control.
Overworking and being underappreciated can push you to express your anger.
Feelings of not being good enough, no matter how hard you try, lead to feelings of disappointment in yourself for not meeting your own standards. Or, you might be frustrated with someone else for not meeting your expectations.
Jealousy and envy can also spark feelings of anger, but not everyone will identify or accept these feelings openly. It’s common to feel frustrated or angry when you perceive that someone is better than you or has something you want.
Rejection can be a difficult emotion to deal with, and it’s often the root cause of anger. Whether you experience it in personal or professional relationships, rejection can hurt your ego and make you feel inadequate.
Being treated unfairly, made fun of, or rejected can leave you feeling humiliated or embarrassed. These feelings can also overwhelm you and make you feel frustrated and angry.
Regardless of the cause of your anger, you might end up facing lasting, often negative consequences if you don’t learn to control or deal with your emotions healthily.
My therapy for anger control can help you identify the real reason why you feel angry and help you deal with it healthily. With my professional support, you can begin to understand what drives your anger, process deeper emotions underneath it, and learn practical tools to respond in a calmer, more constructive way.
Challenges Addressed in Anger Therapy
Many of my clients seek therapy for anger because they struggle with one or more of the following challenges:
You may find yourself easily irritated, snapping at loved ones, or unable to de-escalate during disagreements.
Many people suppress emotions like sadness, fear, or disappointment—only for them to erupt later as anger.
After anger passes, it’s common to feel guilt or shame, especially if your actions affected someone close to you.
Frequent anger can strain relationships at home or work, leaving you feeling misunderstood or isolated.
Sometimes anger is a mask for deeper pain or unmet emotional needs stemming from earlier life experiences.
For some, the anger is turned inward fuelled by perfectionism, self-blame, or feeling like you’re never good enough.
How Dr McPhee’s Anger Therapy Can Help
I’m a Chartered Clinical Psychologist with a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and hold an advanced certificate in Schema Therapy. In my fifteen years of experience, I’ve been offering a research-backed, compassionate and personalised approach for people struggling with anger issues.
My anger therapy approach blends the best of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), compassion-focused therapy (CFT), and DBT and schema therapy techniques, with a personalised approach to each session to fit your needs.
Here’s some more detail about the therapy techniques that I commonly use:
I use schema therapy techniques like imagery, mode dialogues, limit setting, and empathic confrontation to manage your anger. We look at four modes that lead to your anger, such as the angry child mode, the angry protector mode, the bully and attack mode, and the Healthy Adult mode.
In my CBT sessions, we focus on identifying and challenging unhelpful thought patterns and beliefs that fuel your anger. You’ll learn practical tools to recognise triggers, reframe your thinking, and adopt healthier behavioural responses in stressful situations.
In CFT, anger is often a response to deeper emotions like shame, fear, or rejection. CFT helps you develop a more compassionate inner voice and soften the harsh self-criticism that often fuels anger. We work together to activate your soothing system, reduce the dominance of your threat system, and cultivate emotional warmth and self-understanding, laying the foundation for lasting change.
In DBT sessions, I help you build emotional regulation skills and increase distress tolerance. We also work on mindfulness and interpersonal effectiveness, helping you stay calm in the moment, respond rather than react, and communicate your needs without escalating conflict.
My Anger Therapy Process
Why Choose Dr McPhee for Anger Management Therapy?
When you commit to anger management therapy with me, you’ll receive a comprehensive and tailored therapeutic approach to controlling and managing your anger. I’ll also help you reflect on and regulate the emotions that trigger your anger.
My treatment for anger focuses on practising relaxation and mindfulness techniques to help you feel more in control of your emotions.
Anger Therapy in Hampshire or Online
Overcoming anger issues can be difficult to accomplish alone. With my therapy for anger issues, I can guide you to take better control of your emotions. If you’re ready to become a calmer and emotionally controlled version of yourself, I invite you to join me in my anger management therapy sessions today.
I’m here to work with you at your pace and guide you as you move away from the negative emotions that make you angry. You can choose between in-person sessions at my Hampshire clinic or online sessions.
Contact me at info@drmcphee.co.uk, or call me to schedule a complimentary 15-minute consultation.
If your anger feels overwhelming, comes out in ways that harm your relationships, or leaves you feeling ashamed or out of control, therapy can help. You don’t have to wait for things to get worse—anger therapy is about understanding and responding differently to strong emotions.
I integrate Schema Therapy, CBT, DBT, and CFT, this means we don’t just treat the symptoms; we explore the deeper roots of your anger, teach practical tools for managing it in the moment, and help you build emotional resilience over time. The goal is not just control, but inner healing.
It depends on your individual needs and goals. Some clients feel a shift in just a few sessions, while others benefit from longer-term support to work through deeper patterns. We’ll discuss this together and tailor the pace to suit you.
Not at all. Anger is a natural emotion, and it often points to something important, like a boundary being crossed or a need being unmet. The key is learning how to recognise, express, and respond to anger in ways that are constructive rather than harmful.
Yes. Many people internalise anger, which can lead to depression, anxiety, or chronic stress. Therapy can help you understand and work through those feelings in a healthy way even if you don’t express anger outwardly.
Please schedule a complimentary 15-minute consultation to explore how we might work together.