Psychiatrist dissects the violent behaviour

BENGALURU: Road rage, pub brawls, mass hysteria or mob mentality are caused by a combination of personal personality problems and environmental factors.Dr Sathish Ramaiah, psychiatrist, People Tree Hospital said, “Our vulnerabilities get exposed when there is a trigger. It is more of an impulse. It need not be a planned aggression. To manage anger or temper the person has to first accept an insight into his personality that he is an impulsive person.

Acceptance will give the power for prevention. There are carefully regimented programmes for anger management. We give cognitive aid. Behaviourally, we ask them to do lot of breathing exercises and yoga.” One can shiver in rage, become red in the face, break things or be self-destructive or hurtful.

“We take patient history about in what situations he gets angry. We speak to families on how he was as a child. In a sensitive way, we identify those moments by noticing their heart beat and blood pressure. First, we appreciate, speak empathetically, tell them that we understand that he/she is upset/not happy with this emotion,” he said.

“We put across our perspective. They may disagree with what we say. We can’t continue the conversation if there is violence. Rapid tranquilisers calm them down at that time. It may not treat the underlying issue. But long-term psychotherapy and anti-depressants that take time to work, can,” he said.

“Many people disagree with what the family says. But we explain that taking medicine won’t cause any side effects and they themselves see the damage it has caused. They don’t enjoy hurting others unwillingly,” he said.