What would you do if a close member of your family suddenly developed massive anger issues?
What if they suddenly became enraged after very minimal provocation or argument?
What if they suddenly got road rage or started slamming doors after a slight disagreement?
Maybe they have IETD, Intermittent Explosive Traumatic Disorder?
This is a mental health condition that experts have yet to concur on a particular cause. Instead, it is believed that it can occur from several factors, including physical, genetic, or even environmental conditions.
There are many signs that a relative might be suffering from this condition, and no matter whether they are old or young, they should be referred to a mental health professional.
Signs and Symptoms
Sufferers may show symptoms of changes in behavior, such as:-
Self-harming, property damaging, physical aggression, harming animals, out & out verbal defiance, and outbursts of anger.
Their thoughts and impulses occur at high speeds; they may hear echoes or develop muscular ‘twitches.’
Sufferers can show physical symptoms causing self-harm, muscular tension, high heartbeats, headaches, numbness and tightness of the chest, and even involuntary tremors.
They are known to feel ‘on edge.’ To feel shame, guilt, or detached, intolerant, then suddenly lose control.
They can accumulate other mental disorders as part of IETD, such as Attention Deficit Disorder, Anxiety, Depression, and Substance Abuse.
Who Does IETD Affect
The disorder can affect children or adults, generally males from 6 years old up to young adults and 40 years old.
What to do if your loved one shows signs of IETD
Talk immediately to your GP and get a referral to a Mental Health Professional with experience in diagnosing IETD.
The Mental Health Professional does so by using specific diagnostic criteria. These criteria involve a thorough interview with questions about personal family medical history, with an additional focus on relationships, school or work history, and impulse controls.
Those interviews may involve close friends and family to get at previous behavioral displays and personal history.
To get a diagnosis of IETD, the patient must show a failure to control aggressive impulses. The displays of aggression aren’t pre-planned. They appear suddenly.
There are High Frequency but low-intensity happenings with verbal aggression, rows or fights, temper tantrums, and even physical aggression to property or animals.
There are also Low-Frequency episodes with high intensity. These might include damage to property or physical injury to animals or people.
The extent of aggression during those outbursts must be out of proportion entirely to the situation, and they occur on impulse.
How is IETD Treated?
Treatment will involve Psychotherapy that focuses on how thoughts change in relation to their anger and aggression. Also, dependent on the patient’s age and symptoms, they may be prescribed medication.
Treatment will either stop those anger outbursts entirely or manage the intensity down to a milder reaction and frequency.
Psychotherapy or talk therapy using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the main treatment of IETD. CBT teaches those with IEDT how to manage life’s negative issues, thoughts, and aggressive impulses.
Mental Health Professionals use techniques to restructure unhelpful thoughts, frustrating situations, or imagined threats. They also use relaxation training techniques such as deep breathing and muscle relaxation to teach the patient how to respond to triggering situations. They even train responses such as how to walk away from explosive or aggressive situations.
Medications used involve antidepressants, antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, antianxiety drugs, and mood regulators.
Longer Term
In the long term, those treatments can manage the condition, but it appears to be a longer-lasting illness, lasting between twelve and twenty years or even a lifetime.
Sufferers can be more prone to depression, anxiety, alcohol or substance abuse, and even be at risk of self-harming or suicide.
Because the illness can develop over the long term, it is essential that sufferers seek professional help as early as possible.
Resources:
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17786-intermittent-explosive-disorder
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermittent_explosive_disorder
