Empaths are highly sensitive people who have a heightened ability to sense and feel the emotions of others. Empathic individuals are often compassionate, empathetic, and sensitive to the needs and feelings of others.

However, because empaths can also take on the emotional pain of others, they can experience their own negative emotions, such as anger, frustration, and resentment, when they feel overwhelmed.

When they get angry, empaths experience physical symptoms as well as anger outbursts. Given the intense emotions they have, those anger outbursts can significantly harm their romantic relationships and other intimate relationships. That’s why an empathic person has to manage difficult emotions.

As an intuitive empath, I fully understand how negative emotional energy, taken on as an emotional contagion, can cause sensory overload. That’s why sensitive individuals like myself have to create effective emotional boundaries. It’s critical for our own emotional health.

Let’s examine what exactly happens when an empath gets angry and the life strategies that can help them effectively manage their anger. 

What Happens When Empathic Individuals Are Fed Up?

When empaths get angry, they may experience a range of physical and psychological symptoms. Some of these symptoms include:

• Increased heart rate, blood pressure, and adrenaline

• Muscle tension, headaches, and stomachaches

• Feeling hot, flushed, or sweaty

• Feeling restless, agitated, or irritable

• Feeling defensive, hostile, or aggressive

• Feeling guilty, ashamed, or embarrassed

• Feeling hurt, betrayed, or misunderstood

• Feeling powerless, helpless, or hopeless

Anger is a natural and healthy emotion that can help empaths to assert themselves, protect themselves, and communicate their needs and feelings. However, anger can also be destructive and harmful if it is not expressed in a constructive and respectful way. Some of the negative consequences of unmanaged anger include:

• Damaging relationships with others

• Hurting oneself or others physically or emotionally

• Losing trust, respect, or credibility

• Creating conflict, tension, or violence

• Worsening mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, or PTSD

• Impairing physical health issues such as chronic fatigue, chronic pain, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or insomnia

Empaths don’t get really angry very often because they see the vulnerabilities in the people who would irritate them. But when they do, they can release a barrage of negative energies that can significantly harm the emotional health and well-being of the people around them, as this video explains can happen with narcissists. 

That’s why they have to learn to manage their angry feelings so that they won’t do further damage to the people they are usually trying to help. 

How Can Empaths Manage Their Anger?

Anger is a natural and healthy emotion that arises when we feel threatened, violated, or frustrated. It can help us to assert our boundaries, protect ourselves, and express our needs.

However, anger can also be destructive and harmful if it is not managed properly. It can lead to conflicts, violence, resentment, and health problems.

Empaths may experience anger more intensely and frequently than others for several reasons. First, they may pick up on the anger of others and feel it as their own.

Second, they may have difficulty setting boundaries and saying no to others’ demands, which can make them feel overwhelmed and resentful. Third, they may suppress their own anger to avoid hurting or upsetting others, which can cause it to build up and explode later.

Therefore, it is important for empaths to learn how to prevent and cope with anger in healthy ways. Here are some tips that may help:

• Recognize your triggers

Identify the situations, people, or events that make you angry or frustrated. For example, you may get angry when someone criticizes you, when you witness injustice, or when you feel ignored. Knowing your triggers can help you to avoid them or prepare for them in advance.

• Practice self-care

Empaths need to take care of themselves physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. This means getting enough rest, eating well, exercising regularly, meditating, spending time in nature, and doing things that bring you joy. Self-care can help you to reduce stress, balance your emotions, and recharge your energy.

• Express your feelings

Empaths tend to bottle up their emotions for fear of hurting others or being rejected. However, this can make them feel more angry and resentful over time.

Empaths need to find healthy ways to express their feelings, such as talking to a trusted friend or therapist, writing in a journal, or engaging in creative activities. Expressing your feelings can help you to release tension, gain clarity, and heal.

• Set boundaries

Empaths often have a hard time saying no to others or asserting their needs. They may feel guilty or selfish for doing so. However, setting boundaries is essential for empaths to protect their energy and well-being.

Empaths need to learn how to say no politely but firmly when they feel overwhelmed or uncomfortable. They also need to communicate their expectations and preferences clearly and respectfully. Setting boundaries can help you to prevent resentment, frustration, and burnout.

• Seek support

Empaths may feel lonely or isolated because they feel different from others or misunderstood by them. They may also struggle with asking for help or accepting it from others. However, empaths need to realize that they are not alone and that they deserve support.

Empaths need to seek out people who understand them, appreciate them, and respect them. They also need to be open to receiving help or guidance from others when they need it. Seeking support can help you to feel connected, validated, and empowered.

By managing their anger in a healthy way, empaths can not only avoid the negative effects of anger but also use it as a catalyst for positive change.  

How Can Anger Help an Empath?

Anger can help empaths to gain insight into themselves and others. I remember getting so angry at my narcissistic mother over something she had said that I knew was passive-aggressive. 

When I later delved into that trigger, I realized that the reason I had gotten so angry was that I feared I was becoming passive-aggressive, just like her. It gave me more insight into why she had triggered me so intensely.

It’s important that empaths are able to identify triggered emotions to be able to avoid being manipulated by toxic people, as you can see in this video. 

This incident helped me to identify and resolve some underlying issues and internal conflicts I didn’t even realize were there. It also helped me realize that “there but for the grace of God go I”. 

Understanding that helped me have more compassion for my narcissistic mother. It helped me see that she wasn’t a bad person; she was just someone with a mental disorder. After I realized that, I always made sure to take several deep breaths when I felt she was triggering me so that I could manage my trigger without exploding at her. 

Final Thoughts

Empaths are people who have a high sensitivity to the emotions of others. This can make them prone to experiencing anger when they are overwhelmed by the emotions of others or when they feel that their boundaries are violated. 

Anger is a natural and healthy emotion that can help empaths to assert themselves, protect themselves, and communicate their needs and feelings. However, anger can also be destructive and harmful if it is not expressed in a constructive and respectful way. 

Therefore, it is important for empaths to learn how to manage their anger effectively and positively by recognizing the signs and triggers of anger, taking a time-out to calm down, and breathing deeply before taking action.