FAQs
No. We have many women who have successfully graduated from our programs!
Although we accept mandated clients, 95% of AMU participants are self referred. Most people are not angry all the time like you would imagine or perhaps you’ve seen on TV. Most people are high-functioning but they report that anger is usually impacting one aspect of their life, typically a relationship. Anger is a learned behavior and can be a lifelong issue if it isn’t unlearned.
Typically it takes about 12 hours to learn the skills in our programs. The individual sessions are conducted once a week for 12 weeks, and the group meets weekly for 90 minutes for 8 weeks. Participants are welcome to stay longer and some choose to because they enjoy the support at AMU.
Anger Management is a skills-based class or program where participants learn practical tools to effectively manage their anger through the use of a curriculum or workbook. Many clinicians in private practice advertise that they provide anger management when in fact they are providing psychotherapy. Those who focus on helping clients with managing anger have special training and are certified in anger management. Anger is an emotion, and rage or aggression is a learned behavior rather than a mental disorder. Anger is not a medical diagnosis and anger management is not psychotherapy; therefore, it is not covered by health insurance. Many studies show that psychotherapy alone does not help improve anger management.
Live sessions are facilitated by our licensed clinicians who also have extensive training in anger management. Sessions (whether one-on-one or group) begin with an initial check-in with participants, and then a skill is introduced. Sessions are augmented with videos, role playing and engaging interactive activities. At the end of each session, participants are assigned “homework” from the workbook in order to practice skill sets and prepare for the next session. You’ll constantly be learning practical skills to apply in life!
The curriculum and skills are the same with both the one-on-one and group programs, so it really depends on your personal preferences. The one-on-one program is more private, so participants receive more individualized attention. Some see group sessions as a powerful tool because participants can share anger experiences. This reduces shame and allows participants to offer and receive feedback utilizing Anger Management U’s 9-step process.
