Emotional stress and anger trigger the release of stress hormone cortisol in the body.

Small releases of cortisol can give the body a quick burst of energy. However, higher and more prolonged increases can bringinto the body a host of negative effects. It can create a blood sugar imbalance; it can decrease bone density, suppress the body's immune response and make it susceptible to chronic inflammation; it can suppress thyroid function, slowing down the body's metabolism; it can impair the brain's thinking ability and increase blood pressure. Anger can raise your heart rate to 180 beats a minute. It can raise your blood pressure from 120 over 80 to 220 over 130, perhaps even higher. Your breathing becomes rapid as you try to get more oxygen into your body. Your body tenses and and your muscles become tight. When you become stressed, your mind is in survival mode and your body releases chemicals to clot the blood, creating a potentially dangerous situation: a clot can travel through the blood vessels the brain or heart, resulting in a stroke or heart attack. Anger also impedes circulation. Lack of oxygen can cause severe chest pains. Uncontrollable anger can trigger the bursting of a brain artery resulting in a stroke. Tight neck and head muscles can cause tension headaches, migraines or lead to insomnia. Even your metabolism is at risk. Anger is blocked energy that can slow down your body`s metabolism. Stress and anger can trigger eating binges and weight gain. Anger stimulates the release of acids in the stomach causing acid reflux and gastric ulcers. neurons receive different chemical signals that prompt them to switch on or off.Stress and anger compromise these functions and jeopardize the brain's ability to slow down.

The cerebral cortex (cortex) is the thinking part of the brain where logic and judgment reside. It is the outer portion of the brain and is divided into lobes. Think of the cortex as thestrategy center of the brain. The emotional center of the brain is the limbic system. It is located lower in the brain and is considered to be more primitive than the cortex. When someone is experiencing and expressing anger, he or she is not using the thinking (cortex) part of the brain, but primarily, the limbic center of the brain.

What is important to know is: anger involves a trigger to the emotions that so easily charges us up that we lose it, and it will often take about 20 minutes before we can once again become more logical.