Anger is a fierce emotion. Many of us, especially women, grow up thinking we shouldn’t feel or express it. When it comes to anger we can be quite numb and unwilling or unable to access it. When it does surface it can leave us feeling raw and torn open. If we’re unsure how to navigate it, or reluctant even to rub against it, anger will certainly have its way with us.
Something happens with anger when we stop relying on our addictions, major as well as minor, those disguised even as harmless distraction. First, there’s withdrawal – a reluctant shedding that disturbs our entire being. Then, we actually start to feel the depth of all that has been stored and locked away. When these feelings awaken it can be like unleashing a starving lion. There’s no stopping the animal unless, of course, we sedate it once again. We often do. We spend countless hours pursuing sedation, even entire lifetimes.
When anger first begins to emerge in us it can be like a violent belly ache. It can cause us pain and give birth to grief. It can also be exhilarating, providing energy and reminding us of our inherent power and wisdom. It can jolt us out of a kind of psychic sleep and move us swiftly into necessary action. Working with anger takes patient practice, but inviting the lion in can be humbling – integral to our healing, our becoming whole and fully alive.