Feeling angry and frustrated can make you see red – you might have the urge to throw something, drink something, or tell someone to get out. Woah, take a deep breath and go for a walk or calm down for a few minutes before making a decision. Otherwise, you could end up regretting your choices. Here are 11 things you shouldn’t do when feeling frustrated, because you’ll regret it and it could cost you your job or relationship.
1. Don’t Scream Up A Storm.
If you’re feeling frustrated with your partner during a fight, don’t raise your voice – it’s so rude and toxic. Similarly, don’t scream at people who are trying to help you when your computer crashes or at your co-workers when a client gives you BS. Instead, walk away from the situation to calm down before interacting with others. You don’t want to seem unreasonable or unprofessional.
2. Don’t Blame Someone Else.
It’s easy to want to blame someone else when you’re feeling so frustrated, especially if their mistake has caused you to lose a ton of work and time at the office. Look, it’s unfair, but pointing the finger at others when you’re mad just gives you a bad name. Take responsibility if you need to, but deal with the problem – it’s so much more productive than being angry all day. Besides, you can’t change what happened, so move forward.
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4. Don’t Give People The Silent Treatment.
When you’re frustrated, you might shut down and give other people the silent treatment. But this doesn’t do anything to help you get out of the situation – it just makes it worse! Now, you’ve got to deal with the first problem you had and this new problem with your partner. Ugh. It’s so draining. If you don’t want to talk it out, take a five-minute break to cool down before returning to the situation.
5. Don’t Vent On Social Media.
If you’re angry, you might be tempted to log onto social media and post about your grievances. Um, why would you do this? Meta or IG isn’t your journal, for goodness’ sake. Besides, people are going to comment and wonder if you’re complaining about them. It just looks so tacky to vent on social media. If you have to talk to someone about what they did to upset you, be an adult and thrash it out with them.
6. Don’t Go Binge-Drinking.
Being frustrated can make you reach for that bottle of tequila in your kitchen and down a few shots. Although this might make you feel good in the moment because you’ll be distracted from what’s ailing you, it’s not gonna feel good tomorrow morning and it won’t do anything to fix the situation. Same goes for stuffing down a tub of ice cream.
7. Don’t Get Behind The Wheel.
Obvs you shouldn’t drive after drinking (come on, guys), but you also shouldn’t drive if you’re sober but your intense feelings cause you to drive too fast or recklessly. This is something that could cause you to hurt yourself or other people, which is something you’ll regret forever. It’s so not worth it! Just think: what you’re feeling RN won’t matter in a few weeks or months, so why let it ruin your life?
8. Don’t Ignore Your Feelings.
Maybe you don’t react when you’re dealing with frustration and anger. Instead, you turn your feelings inwards so that you push them down and try to ignore them. Yikes. Bottled-up feelings will erupt sooner or later and can make you sick, so take some time to cool off, then work through your feelings. Write them down, use a punching bag to get them out, or do whatever helps you to process, heal, and get on with things.
9. Don’t Go To Sleep Angry.
If you and your partner have had a crazy argument, you might think going to bed is a good move ’cause you’ll nip that frustration in the bud. Um, nope. You’ll just intensify the negative feelings and they can cause you to wake up angry or have nightmares. Rather deal with the situation before you get your beauty sleep, okay?
10. Don’t Keep Fighting.
Maybe you’re so embroiled in a nasty argument with your friend or partner that you want to keep going. You’re being fueled by your anger that’s giving you second wind to keep fighting, but this is the worst thing you can do. You’re more likely to name-call or say things you don’t mean when you’re THAT angry. Pause for a bit and chat to the person when both of your calm heads are screwed back on. It’ll save energy and won’t risk your relationship.
11. Don’t Go On A Gossip Rampage.
If someone’s upset you and you’re mad as hell, you might resort to confiding about it to a friend or gossiping in your WhatsApp friend group. Yikes, don’t do it ’cause gossiping’s a bad idea. It not only trashes the person you’re talking about, but it also trashes you and can sink your reputation at work. Plus, never ever gossip in a group chat or email thread – those words can come back to bite you.
12. Don’t Believe Your Negative Thoughts.
When negative feelings strike, it’s easy for you to start believing the negative self-talk attached to them. Maybe after experiencing yet another obstacle in your path toward achieving your goal, you tell yourself that you’re a failure/not good enough. Do something constructive with the negative energy hovering around you, such as by going for a walk or run, doing a session of meditation, or journaling. When you feel better, your thoughts won’t spiral.
