My Beliefs and Values

David with Irvin Yalom, the leading exponent of existential psychotherapy (2013)

I am one of the UK’s very few Anger Specialists. I came to this work through my own struggle with anger and the pain it caused me and others around me. It has been an extraordinary journey and I have been privileged to pass on my knowledge and experience to hundreds of clients over more than a decade.

By contacting us about Anger Management you will have already done 50% of the work. I believe this step alone is transformational and worthy of the deepest respect. You have recognised you have a problem that you want to deal with and the truth is that many of us do not even get that far. Within half a dozen sessions (in my experience) you will see that there is “light at the end of the tunnel”. With this realisation your view of yourself and the world may already be shifting along with the behaviours and attitudes which have not been helping you and those around you.

Many of us see anger as a bad thing, in my experience it can be useful – it tells me something is wrong, something I may not even be aware of. If we look at anger in this way then our attitude to it can start to change “what is my anger telling me”. This is especially important in relation to children who will tend to act out their needs rather than verbalise. Everyone feels anger to some degree, it is a normal feeling, part of our humanity. I think this is important. If I think there is something “wrong” about feeling anger then I am exacerbating feelings I am already having trouble with.

David with Stanley Keleman, originator and practitioner of formative psychology (2013)

Anger Management is not like the film with Jack Nicholson, it is serious caring deep and life-changing work – if you want it to be. You will learn techniques for managing your angry behaviour and sometimes that can be enough. At the core is working out what drives our anger and changing our attitude to being angry. This is not about not having anger, it is about using and channelling it in different ways that can be life-enhancing.

Working with anger raises question about how I want to be “me” in the world. It is not about massive sudden changes, these are not generally helpful. This is a gentle process of learning to be more of “who you are” and enacting less of the angry behaviours which are affecting your life and those around you.

I welcome your enquiry in the knowledge that this may come at a time of great difficulty for you, your family, your child  or your relationship. Sometimes the opportunity to be listened to is in itself transformational and out of this a new part of you can be allowed to flourish and grow.

DAVID WOOLFSON

To join a course or for one to one sessions contact us or call 020 8444 9841