Mental health means striking a balance in all aspects of your life: social, physical, spiritual, economic and mental. Reaching a balance is a learning process. At times, you may tip the balance too much in one direction and have to find your footing again. Your personal balance will be unique, and your challenge will be to stay mentally healthy by keeping that balance.
In this section, you will find information and suggestions to help you keep your balance.

Feelings of anger are a normal reaction to some situations beyond your control. They can also indicate that you are simply under too much stress, and it can be hard to know if you should just let your anger pass or work at getting rid of it.
All of us feel angry, at least occasionally. Most of the time when we get angry, we get over it quickly because, somehow, we resolve the situation and our feelings of anger pass. Anger becomes a problem, however, if we “bottle it up” or if we “blow up.” Both of these extremes cause problems for the angry people and for those around them.
In this section, you will find information that will help you manage problematic anger in a healthy way.

We all feel angry sometimes. Most of the time, we can deal with feelings of anger or irritability quickly. We may resolve the situation or look at the problem from a different perspective. However, anger can cause problems in our lives and the lives of those around us. Learn more about recognizing problem anger and taking action.
Longer-term solutions These strategies take more time and effort, but they can help you cope with anger as it comes up in many different situations. The goal is to change the way you react to anger so it doesn’t cause problems in the first place. • Learn what triggers your anger. Some people are triggered by other people, such as a boss, friend, or family member. Certain emotions, such as feeling controlled, ashamed or guilty, can also trigger anger for some people. • Identify your early warning signs so you can take action before your anger turns into fullblown rage. Common early warning signs include a pounding heart, tight chest or jaw, feeling resentful or irritated, or feeling like lashing out. • Talk to someone you trust who may be able to see things more clearly than you do. Remember that anger can tell us we need to solve a problem. Another person can help you practice identifying the real problem, brainstorming solutions, and testing solutions out. • If your anger is caused by something beyond your control, such as a job loss, learn how others have dealt with a similar problem successfully and try their strategies. • Learn and practice skills like healthy thinking, problem solving and stress management. All of these can help manage anger. • Many people find physical activity very helpful. Try going for a walk, playing your favourite sport, or cleaning the house. • Make sure you eat well and get enough sleep. We often lose patience and get irritated more easily when we’re tired or hungry. • Learn mindfulness practices like meditation. Mindfulness teaches you how to look at your thoughts in the present moment without judgment. It may also help teach you to tolerate angry feelings without pushing them away. • Learn more about assertiveness. Anger can persist when we avoid talking directly to someone about something that has made us angry. Assertiveness is a way of telling others what you feel or what you need while respecting their feelings or needs. • If you feel easily frustrated when people don’t act the way you want them to, remember that you cannot control how other people behave. You can only control how you choose to react to those behaviours. Anger and irritability can sometimes be signs of depression or anxiety. If anger continues to cause problems or you notice that anger occurs with other symptoms, it’s a good idea to talk with a doctor or mental health professional.

Note the areas where you showed "very high" or "danger" levels of stress. These are problem areas you should focus on when you develop your Personal Stress Management Plan. If you have no points totals in the "very high" or "danger" zones, congratulations- you are doing a very good job of managing stress.

1) building stress resources and
2) stress prevention through aerobic exercise, yoga, relaxation, nutrition and sleep.

On the lines below, write the three signs which occur earliest and most regularly when you're under stress. You may want to look back at your questionnaire to get an idea of what your early warning signs are. These signs give advance notice of being stressed and allow you to identify what causes you stress, and to take action before serious problems result.