By Christine Wheeler, MA

Road rage is more than just bad behavior; it is a psychiatric condition, according to researchers from Harvard Medical School and Chicago University. Apparently, a mental disorder called Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) could be responsible for road rage. 

It can affect anyone, including former football pro Seth Joyner of the Arizona Cardinals (see below).

According to the DSM-IV, IED is an impulsive, violent, aggressive outburst that is completely out of proportion to the situation triggering it. The person loses control, destroys property and threatens to harm others. People with road rage could now be prescribed antidepressants and mood stabilizers, and because it is a psychiatric condition, could use an IED diagnosis as a legal defense.

While medical research justifies medicating angry people, little is being done to address anger problems at their root. A notable exception to this, however, is a new "Acupuncture without Needles" innovation known as EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques). According to the EFT theory, unresolved negative emotions, trauma and a severely disrupted energy meridian system (or chi) is at the root of this intense anger.

EFT is a do-it-yourself emotional acupuncture technique that balances the body's energy meridians, neutralizing negative emotions and calming explosive behavior. Instead of using needles, however, EFT stimulates various meridian points by gently tapping on them with the fingertips.

Seth Joyner, former Arizona Cardinals linebacker and three-time pro-bowler, learned EFT to enhance his sports performance but uses it regularly in daily life. He uses EFT as a stress reliever and found it helped him control road rage. Says Joyner, "Anger management really has more to do with your reaction to a situation than what someone else does." He no longer gets angry when someone cuts him off in traffic; instead he taps.

"You naturally get upset when that happens, but now I start tapping right away," he said. "It calms you right away and makes you realize you're in control of your emotions, of how you act and react in certain situations."

While a complete description of EFT is beyond the scope of this article, you can learn all the basics from the free EFT Get Started Package on the EFT Web site. This includes a free download of the 79-page EFT Manual. Those wishing to save time and dive right in can get the attractively priced five-star training DVDs.

The American Psychological Association (APA) acknowledges that "memories of traumatic or enraging events can trigger angry feelings," but conventional medicine continues to attribute such behavioral disorders to faulty brain chemicals. People with this impulse control disorder may be prescribed drugs like Prozac and Paxil, combined with anger management therapy.

According to Gary Craig, the Stanford-trained engineer who developed EFT, "In my view, drugs merely tranquilize the impulses that result in anger, whereas EFT clears the roots of anger from the energy system. I see excessive anger as a short circuit in the body's electrical system.

"When someone with this kind of short circuit is triggered in traffic, they are likely to explode. But after EFT treatment, someone with road rage may simply not react when triggered. The electrical impulse to explode no longer exists."

EFT has a success rate of about 80 percent in treating people with anger management issues, including road rage.

The IED study revealed that many people with IED show their first signs of the impulse disorder during adolescence. Males with IED tended to have their first episode at age 13, females at 19. Nearly 82 percent of the people in the study also had anxiety, depression or a substance abuse issue.

Craig explains, "Depression, anxiety and addictions all have the same energetic and emotional roots as anger and rage. The fact that the tendency to explode is traced back to adolescence begs the question of what kind of trauma triggered the initial episode. I believe that any subsequent bouts of rage are reactions to the initial trauma and these outbursts can be permanently calmed with EFT."

With 16 million Americans affected by IED, the problem is more prevalent than researchers expected. According to the study's lead author, Harvard Professor Ronald Kessler, "It is news to a lot of people, even specialists in mental health services, that such a large proportion of the population has these clinically significant anger attacks".

"We don't claim that EFT is a cure-all, but when used correctly, we do get an 80 percent success rate, even with rage issues," says Craig. "There are no known side effects with EFT and angry people are able to find true peace, rather than a simple tranquilizing of their emotions. I believe that, left unchecked, these unresolved emotions will manifest into illness."

The American Heart Association links heart disease with anger in several medical studies. In fact, people with high anger scores are three times more likely to suffer a heart attack than people with low anger scores. What is particularly disturbing is that excessive anger proved to be more of a heart health risk than common risk factors of smoking, obesity or diabetes.

Eric Robins, MD, noted California urologist, uses EFT in his medical practice. Says Dr. Robins, "Some day the medical profession will wake up and realize that unresolved emotional issues are the main cause of 85 percent of all illnesses. When they do, EFT will be one of their primary healing tools ... as it is for me."

More on EFT

Please note that in addition to alleviating road rage, EFT has been a consistently effective healing tool for hundreds of other physical, mental and emotional ailments. For more information, you can explore the EFT Web site and its numerous success stories regarding fears, phobias, emotional traumas and physical ailments.

Please consult qualified health professionals before putting EFT into practice for yourself or others.