In the heat of anger, we often don’t use our best judgment.
We may say and do things we later regret, or lose track of what we’re arguing about.
Why is that?
Well, it has to do with cortisol. You see, anger can spark an overload of cortisol in the brain.
So where does the cortisol come from in the first place? That’s something we got into here.
And to help you visualize what’s happening when there’s too much cortisol in the brain, we put this together for you (and please feel free to make a copy to share).
Click the image to enlarge
Where do these stress hormones come from?
To find out, check out Part 1 of this infographic series.
- Elevated cortisol can cause your neurons to take in too much calcium through their membranes
– The problem with this is it can make cells fire too frequently and die. - Too much cortisol n cause a loss of neurons in your prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampus.
- Suppressed activity in your prefrontal cortex (PFC) can prevent you from using your best judgement
– This is why you might not make good decisions or plan well for the future when you’re upset - Too much cortisol in your hippocampus can kill neurons and keep your brain from making new ones. This can weaken your short-term memory and prevent you from forming new memories properly.
– This is why you might not remember what you want to say in an argument - Too much cortisol can decrease serotonin – that’s the hormone that makes you happy.
– A decrease in serotonin can make you feel anger and physical pain more easily.
– This also might be why you act in more aggressive ways or feel depressed.
As you can see, these hormones can have a big impact on your brain. But that’s not all they might do.
If you’d like to print a copy to share, just click here: Color or Print-friendly
(We put a lot of work into creating these resources, so please include the copyright information and attribute to NICABM if sharing. Thanks!)
For more practical tools and strategies to help clients manage anger, have a look at this short course featuring Stephen Porges, PhD; Marsha Linehan, PhD; Peter Levine, PhD; Ron Siegel, PsyD; Pat Ogden, PhD; and other top experts.
Now that you’ve seen how anger can impact the brain, how will you use these ideas in your life or work? Please leave a comment.
Next: How Anger Affects Your Brain and Body, Part 3 – How Stress Hormones Change Your Body
I knew cortisol kills off brain cells but didn’t know why.
This is part of the information we promote to health and children’s centre staff as part of breastfeedng and relationship building training, supporting parent/ baby attachment from conception through to 5 years
In effect- the key to mental stability is being calm in all situations. Of course! Thank you for this wise and vital information.
thank you exeland method to learn
than you again
This is brilliant, it makes it easy to understand. I will share with link workers (Health and We’ll Being/Social Prescriber) staff who support clients with a range of issues, many who are angry. They will share with people they support helping them to work on reducing anger.
Interesting, thank you.
Simple easily understood explanation. Very informative in a quick and entertaining format. ???
Very informative article on how we tick and why. Look forward to reading the next one in the series.
Thank you for these!
I would like to know if l could get a book from u with these great drawings of the message above
I work with children and families and these graphics would be helpful to help them understand how anger works in the body because it does wear out the body. I am working with a youth whose core belief is that “after I fight that person it feels good” well think again. These graphics are good material to show that the body gets stressed out. DO YOU HAVE ONE FOR ANXIETY? and DEPRESSION. I was looking for something like this online that is self-explanatory GREAT JOB! i love it and its simple and it makes sense to grasp.
I’d like to use the method suggested on your website’s video called ” A Practical Skill for Defusing Anger”, with Marcia Lineham
Dr Marcia recommends the above method is the next step after a person has admitted that they are angry and believes it is Worthwhile for one’s self to decrease their anger.
Great Imaging, often it’s so difficult to verbally express how much “Damage Anger can Cause”
Awesome information that I will use with clients.
I am a teachers aid for special needs I have created a movement program , I am a Career as well this helps me explain things to my clients who are. Children and adults
Very interesting and simple
thank you Michelle
Very interesting . I would like one of your diograms for my wall. To make people aware of anger issues and stress related problems our brain can receive.
Many thanks for highlighting trauma as not many members of the public can understand trauma.
Kind regards
Steve traylor
working with children and their parents about anger outbursts is so very difficult. I certainly appreciate these materials. These can be presented and hung to remind everyone to take the time to calm themselves and be more adaptive.
I love this article, it was broken down and was easy to understand. Thank you
Dear Team NICABM, These infographic are really helpful for one to understand brain chemistry. You guys are doing fantastic job in helping mankind. Keep up the good work.
Love & Blessing!!
Yogendra Shah
I will use these ideas in my life and my work with the unacknowledged trauma and grief of adults who grew up with one or both parents with a serious mental illness. This will be terrific to use. By the way, if people are interested in my (easy to read) research and articles about this population which I researched, then all they need to do is Google my name, Suzette Misrachi, to get the link and freely download the research. There they will also find a link to my quick brief articles (based on my and other people’s research) in medium.com Thanks for this great Infographic!
This is awesome !
My teen daughters have anxiety.
This will explain how the fight or flight effects their body in an easy to understand way.
Is there a part 1? Where do I find it?
Thanks !
Part 1 is in this article. In the paragraph
So where does the cortisol come from in the first place? That’s something we got into here.
That’s something we got into here. is a link to Part 1
Thank you for sharing this information.
I don’t get angry very often. I used to cry a lot and feel a afraid. I also felt guilty and waited for the next time I would be in trouble or something bad would happen. Even as an older woman of 60.
I know that all of this effects the body,mind and soul in negative ways, especially when you have had many years of these experiences.
I want to feel like a balanced adult and not an fraid child.
I can’t live a normal life with the all the health challenges that l have. This is not an easy thing to accept or live with.
Kind regards from Patricia G
Thank you for your ongoing commitment towards quality information that challenges and help to change the way we provide counselling services to clients.
Anna Dos Santos
Very interesting amazingly you don’t realise that you yourself could be the reason for your well being.
Love these as tools
That how I’m feeling is yet another investigative crack I need to explore further. That I’m feeling broken and defeated for a reason!
If you grew up in a desfunctinal home and you always were in a fight or flight situation my question is can you have a over abundance of cortisol in your brain because of the abuse
To get Part 1
I plan to use these infographics while working with teens in my mental health practice. Having the anger process so clearly laid out in simple graphics will be most helpful!
First of all , thank you for the work you share with me and others . In a nutshell: mindfulness meditation, Chi Gong, working out at the gym, the Sangha, going lightly on the “news”, spending time in nature , connecting with Source, watching what I eat, and remembering it’s my life and we are all in this together. ??
Coffee drinking spikes your cortisol. Does such caffeinated cortisol elevation lead to neuronal death the same way cortisol elevated by anger?
Anger seems to have greatly affected and is currently affecting my health Do you offer workshops or private sessions?
Your emails seem to address my concerns each time i read them though I feel overwhelmed at the moment with healing modalities and incoming Daily Om, mindful valley, gaia .. that it seems that I just end up ignoring them all. I’m currently looking to join a wellness retreat with toga and meditation so help me quit smoking (my willingness is strong but not quite there ahd I’m reducing the quantity to less than 8 at the moment ) I’ve gotten lost in my text to you but would so appreciate some advice and I’m happy to pay for a phone session if needed. Thank you Kindly
Manuela Amzallag
917 710 6681
Look into an EMDR trained therapist in your area. EMDRIA EMDR International Association’s website can help you find one.
I had cushings disease and even my family left me to suffer alone
THANK YOU FOR the information! I am a survivor and now a crisis/trauma therapist, in the very baby stage
This helps tremendously both personal and professional
These infographics are so important and easy to understand. I do Grief Recovery Work and what I have learned from these infographics and videos has been very helpful in explaining to clients what is happening in their brain and body..
Thank you for posting these.
Thanks for these wonderful infographics—fabulous information, easily depicted!
I’d love to see citations, too, especially re. mentions of neuronal calcium influx and neuronal death. And I’m curious re the latter—neuronal genomics/epigenetics vis a vis neuronal demise vs. dysfunction.
Always appreciate the good work of NICABM.
Very good and easy to understand information! Thank you for distributing this.
Thank you.
Thanks.
Good one.
Same is true for fear, and all this happens to the brains of children when they are put under anxiety and stress by: neglect, abuse and group day care for age under 3 yrs.
Society should support parents much much more to be loving and able primary caregivers, and parents need enough time AND money to be available for their childrens‘ needs.
Hello,
These graphics are so client-friendly. Explaining the process aloud doesn’t help nearly as much. Clients can easily enjoy the mechanics of the brain under duress.
Thank you,
Christine
The article is interesting and meaningful, thank you for sharing this article.
wonderful graphics – so simple for people 🙂
Very informative and well presented. The pictures are great and clients can understand it quite well.
Thank you for the presentation.
Thank you very much!!!
I teach MBSR and also I teach mindfulness for managing stress in the classrooms and this tool is wonderful.
I have used mine but it’s not as beautiful and clear as yours!!!
I do appreciate your generosity.
Thanks for this! My clients love the pics- so easy to understand and therefore much easier to handle your inner demons, once you know the system!
Adam
This is fabulous,
I teach in the clinical practicum for MA in psychotherapy…Students loved this!!!
With deep gratitude,
Lakshmi