Anger Therapy and the Brain

Interesting report from a therapist who works with angry men. He finds that talking to them in terms of brain wiring gets their attention in a way that other therapeutic techniques do not:

How can learning about the brain--particularly the angry brain and how it got that way--possibly influence clients who have a hard time taking in therapy or sticking with anger-management techniques? Aren't concepts drawn from brain research simply too abstruse, too abstract, and apparently unrelated to daily life to make much difference to them? In fact, what I've found is just the reverse: these men are fascinated by information about how anger develops in the brain and why it's so hard to control, and they consider it far more relevant to their lives than many standard therapy concepts. Getting to understand a bit of what happens "inside their heads" when they get angry resonates deeply with them. In one way, they can cling to their defensiveness and denial systems, since they certainly can't be accused of deliberately messing up their minds. Sidestepping their defensiveness and emphasizing their opportunity to do something right that will retrain their brains gives them a positive direction and a possible source for well-earned personal pride. Furthermore, hearing me explain how, by regular, committed behavioral practice of various anger-management techniques, they can literally change their own brain circuits, stimulates both hope that they can change and desire to begin. For the first time in their lives, they feel they might be capable of literally using their own brains to change their brains. It is a real revelation to many angry men.

I suspect this article is too optimistic in the way that much writing by therapists is, but I am fascinated by the power of finding the right language to motivate people.