Tantrums at 30.... ;(

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I don't really have "tantrums," but there are times when I will get really angry for no apparent reason, and it takes all the self - restraint I have to not hit something (never another person, just an object) or break something (s) (I've never actually done this before, but maybe someday; I've been sorely tempted before). Like yesterday, when my mom, stepdad, younger half - sisters and I were driving up to NY to see my grandparents, and there were lots of stupid drivers in one particular area we passed thru. I offered at one point to flip someone off for my stepdad (something really out of character for me) but he declined....and when we were making our way thru a construction area where there was only one lane, there was one dude who bumped a dude driving a pickup who nearly ran into us and ended up running into the back of a minivan and knocking his rear license plate off....I was really anxious and p!ssed for some reason, and demanded loudly to anyone who was listening, "Is he (the dude in the out of control pickup) DRUNK or something???"

And when the minivan drove over to a shoulder and the pickup dude kept going, I also blurted, "That guy's a hit - and - run!!" but it only turned out that he was just driving to a shoulder a little farther away. At the time, I didn't realize that it's wasn't pickup dude's fault he ran into the minivan, but my mom and sisters were in a car accident when my sisters were very young (back in 2006) and part of the reason why I was so upset was that I knew that if the pickup had run into us, they'd be severely injured and traumatized again.

So yeah, I get really mad sometimes, too, but I don't throw actual tantrums. If it's any consolation, OP, my stepmother's in her 60s and still sort of throws tantrums sometimes, and so does my dad occasionally.

I get those kinds of minor meltdowns sometimes too. When the internet's too slow, when my phone's not working properly, when something's making a noise I don't like, when people change my plans etc. Then I usually end up swearing, hitting something (or myself), screaming into a cushion and/or throwing things. Those meltdowns/tantrums don't last that long but they're annoying and I'm not sure why I behave that way.

I nearly threw a chair out of my window when I didn't get a job I desperately needed because of one of those stupid "personality tests", and once because I fell asleep when I was horribly sick and spilled a full glass of freezing cold water on myself, I almost threw my mattress out of the bedroom window. Now that I'm married to someone who has tantrums himself, I've had to calm down a lot. I'm the quiet one in our house.

I'm 22 and I don't handle my emotions very well. I've never really grown out of temper tantrums. Well, I wouldn't do them in public and I certainly don't do them much (even when I was a child) but I still have them.

I remember having a lot when I was a child, like once when I was 11 I kicked and screamed for ages because my brother didn't want to play with me, and when I was 8 I kept having tantrums like crying for hours over silly things, and I also always had temper tantrums over things that disappointed me, for example a holiday being cancelled. I still have tantrums over disappointments mostly, especially if they are big disappointments (not so much little disappointments any more).

I still have them lol. My son was even copying my behaviors and one of them was throwing things on the floor. I just know I have to try harder at controlling myself so my kid won't copy me and do them when he isn't around. My parents had to unteach him when they got him.

One time at work I once got frustrated when I couldn't get the paper towel dispenser to work properly so I slammed the thing shut in rage. I was already having a meltdown and then I couldn't get the thing to work properly so it made me angry and I wanted to get the restroom done, not spend 20 minutes messing with the thing and getting more behind in work.

But when I have too much going on in my life, I will have more meltdowns and stress will do that too. Even a major change in my life will do it too because it adds stress. I know I probably should get on some medication for my anxiety but I am feeling better now.

I do this all the time when something doesn't go the way I want it to/planned it to. It mostly used to be expressed as rage and often still is. Nowadays I also often feel very ashamed and frustrated about it and end up clamming up, crying with the frustration of it all and finding it pretty much impossible to communicate until I calm down.

Edit: The thing I hate most is how it can be over ridiculously trivial things. The other day I left my tobacco in my car when I went to visit my friends and had a total meltdown over it. Thankfully they understand to a great degree but it makes it no less embarassing to be nearly 30 and having this stuff happen.

A remote control, three headphones, a bed, a door, a wardrobe shelf, a ruler, many bottles, a cd, several pencils, two keyboards and a mouse became useless in 2012 because of my tantrums. Failing consecutively at something triggers a meltdown, I can't help it. Furthermore, persistent smells and sounds may get me to that line. These effects are not adequate to trigger a meltdown alone, but they can bring me to the limit. I feel the anger rising from my heart to my head, then I simply lose it and start screaming. Also I tend to apply force to the nearest object with all my might. This gets more embarrassing as I get older.

So, you are not alone in this.

Last edited by Somberlain on 09 Aug 2012, 5:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

That is also one of my biggest triggers. It happened last week I was trying to fix my car stereo which had a broken wire. I was at it for like 45 minutes and it kept working and cutting out over and over. I totally flipped, it was horrible :/

Yes, I have them too. I got a sarcastic email from my boss and gave myself a concussion by banging my head against the wall.