Starving the Anger Gremlin: A Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Workbook on Anger Management for Young People (Gremlin and Thief CBT Workbooks) by Kate Collins-Donnelly When there is no one around to talk to or ask for additional help, it can be valuable to capture thoughts and feelings, and self-reflect on angry episodes (Collins-Donnelly, 2012). However, children and young adults can learn skills that help them avoid triggers that lead to angry behavior, assist in managing irate outbursts, and provide the means to restore calm (Collins-Donnelly, 2012).

Use the Alternative Thoughts worksheet to help the teen recognize unrealistic thoughts and how they may blow the situation out of proportion. Then consider more rational, authentic thinking and how it could change the interpretation of the situation. Collins-Donnelly provides three CBT workbooks targeting stress, anxiety and anger. A great feature of these books is that they are geared towards teens. Although the book itself states it is for youth aged 10+, the book is most appropriate for older teens. The gremlin character is accessible for youth, without being too cute and babyish for this age group. The extensive use of visuals and repetition of topics and concepts makes this series a good fit for youth on the spectrum. The workbooks encourage writing and drawing, and youth who enjoy and have strength in reading will be able to benefit... Overall, these workbooks serve as a great introduction to cognitive behavioral therapy and can serve as a great adjunct to in-person psychotheraphy. Teens are taught to identify the sources of their stress, anger, and anxiety as well as the thoughts that accompany these feelings. "Starving the gremlin" serves as a great metaphor for changing your thoughts to change your behavior. On The Spectrum MagazineThe clarity of the text and simplicity of the layout mean that young readers could use the book independently or with the supervision of a parent or carer, or as homework in between sessions with a mental health worker.

Use the Impact of My Anger worksheet to capture examples of angry behavior and consider who has been impacted and how. Anger management — Thinking before taking action and finding creative or physical outlets for anger. We typically believe that other people or events make us angry, but it is our thoughts and beliefs that control our anger. We can, with practice, assume control over our feelings (Collins-Donnelly, 2012). Using the Making Amends worksheet helps teenagers revisit what they have done, apologize for their behavior, and make things right.

Self-reflection — Understanding and reframing situations to make a better assessment of events and the environment. At school, children may exhibit anger and adopt risky behavior, break the rules, skip classes, and engage in potentially harmful pranks. Typically, teens with anger issues have not learned appropriate coping mechanisms or been taught the skills needed to manage their anger (Travis, 2012).

Emotional awareness and regulation — Understanding the emotions that impact us and being capable of managing reactions to them. This imaginative workbook shows young people how to starve their anger gremlin and control their anger effectively. Made up of engaging and fun activities, it helps them to understand why they get angry and how their anger affects themselves and others, and teaches them how to manage angry thoughts and behaviours. The tried-and-tested programme, based on effective cognitive behavioural therapy principles, can be worked through by a young person on their own or with a practitioner or parent, and is suitable for children and young people aged 10+. Need help with your anger? Well this book is for you! Starving the Anger Gremlin will show you how to understand and control your anger using fun and interesting activities. Starving the Anger Gremlin: Anger Management for Young People by Kate Collins-Donnelly – eBook Details I have understood now that having anger can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how you use it. You can use it for protecting yourself or even someone else. But you can also abuse your ability of anger by bullying people, fighting for an unnecessary reason, or even just being a jerk. These are three favorite things to do when I get angry; number one is to take five or ten deep breaths, number two do about 10 or 20 push ups, number three scream or fight your pillow. All of these things will help let all of that anger, stress, and anxiety that has been building up inside of you. You can use these when you feel like you need to calm down and take a breather. Next time someone makes me mad or stressed I know what to do when that time comes, I can either take deep breaths, do push ups, or let it all out on my pillow when I get home. I have also learned how to not take things too seriously. If you take things too seriously no one is going to want to joke around with you because everytime they make a joke you get all in your feelings and start to get upset and angry at the person who made the joke. Also if people know that you can’t take a joke no one is gonna want to be your friend, because no one wants a friend that can make jokes but can’t take jokes, if you get mad that someone is joking with you and you get mad that is not fair to the person that wants to have fun, your not the only one who can make jokes and get away with it, other people want to have fun to, and that is why we all need to control our anger. Reply If you’re looking for more science-based ways to help others communicate better, this collection contains 17 validated positive communication tools for practitioners. Use them to help others improve their communication skills and form deeper and more positive relationships.

Anger Management for Teens Explained

Having sufficient sleep is crucial at any age. Poor sleeping habits significantly affect our emotions, how we control them, and our overall mental wellbeing. Teenagers between 13 and 18 years old should get around 8.5 hours of sleep per night (Walker, 2018; Travis, 2012). This tool can help your clients learn to defuse conflict in an emotionally intelligent way using brief, respectful, and clear communication. This exercise aims to help teenagers understand that the way we behave can upset others and impact how they feel. Making Amends for My Angry Outburst

Starving the Anger Gremlin is an absolute necessity for anyone working with children and young people who may need help with their anger. This workbook was recommended to me by a colleague and, as a Headteacher, I have found it to be a fantastic resource for use in the school with Key Stage 2 pupils. Pupils respond extremely well to its easy to read style, relevant examples and empowering approach. Support staff feel their knowledge in the area of anger management has improved immensely and that the book provides invaluable activities that they can work through with pupils in an educational and supportive way. A superb and effective resource! Teaching teenagers to apologize and offer something to make up for their wrongdoing is a valuable life lesson. Teenagers can develop the capacity to understand and cope with their anger-related issues and acquire anger management skills much better than younger children. As language skills develop, soon-to-be adults can be taught to better explain and reflect on their feelings and process their emotions (Collins-Donnelly, 2012). Adolescent teens are considerably more independent than younger children and express their anger similarly to adults. Behavior can be irritable, defiant, and high risk, involving various unhealthy or unhelpful acts, such as (Travis, 2012):

Best Resources for Helping Youth

This worksheet helps clients recognize when best to disengage from conflict or difficult conversations, cool down, and re-engage later to facilitate greater insight and joint problem-solving. Often, our thoughts about a situation or something that has happened are irrational and unrealistic. Such thinking can be unhelpful and make us emotional and even angry (Peters, 2018). Starving the Anger Gremlin is an absolute necessity for anyone working with children and young people who may need help with their anger. This workbook was recommended to me by a colleague and, as a Headteacher, I have found it to be a fantastic resource for use in the school with Key Stage 2 pupils. Pupils respond extremely well to its easy to read style, relevant examples and empowering approach. Support staff feel their knowledge in the area of anger management has improved immensely and that the book provides invaluable activities that they can work through with pupils in an educational and supportive way. A superb and effective resource! South Yorkshire Headteacher Starving the Anger Gremlin does an excellent job of examining the harmful effects of anger. Kate Collins-Donnelly clearly explains how irrational thoughts influence negative emotions such as anger. She also helps readers understand how they can change their reactions to events by changing their thinking. Starving the Anger Gremlin is a well-constructed manual on anger management that will undoubtedly help children and adolescents. Read it and enjoy!’ Jerry Wilde Anger in children and teens is an upsetting emotion with the potential for long-term damage if left untreated. While crucial to spot early, parents may be unclear of the cause or triggering factors, and left frustrated regarding how best to help their child (Travis, 2012).