One way people ruin their chances for happiness is by holding on to resentments, anger, and rage. When you’ve been wronged, it’s natural to feel upset, and anger can be useful, at least for a while. Anger helps you defend yourself when attacked because it revs up your body to right a wrong. 

However, anger that’s held for too long begins to poison your body and soul. Chronic anger leads to high blood pressure, emotional disturbance, and a decrease in common sense. Thus, when you’re angry, you simply can’t be happy. 

But ridding yourself of chronic anger isn’t an especially easy task. You must do something that feels rather counterintuitive: Somehow find forgiveness for those who have wronged you.

There may be certain wrongs that you probably can’t realistically forgive. For example, you may find yourself unable to forgive acts of severe violence or abuse. In that case, an alternative approach is to let go of the anger and rage by finding acceptance.