Road Rage? It May Be a Clinical Disorder, ABC GMA News
This is a story that was run on ABC Good Morning America and published on ABC’s news site. Intermittent Explosive
Disorder is a condition where anger can go from zero to 90 in no time. It is an imbalance in brain chemicals that affects up to one in 20 people – more men than women. It is far worse than just having a bad temper. It is often seen in people who experience severe Road Rage.
A new study of more then 9,000 people found that four percent had IED. Harvard Medical School epidemiologist Ronald Kessler said that he was “blown away by how many people meet criteria” for IED. He described it as “mind-boggling” that its prevalence hadn’t been recognized sooner.
Okay, I’m having a hard time with this. I want to be open minded and considerate of valid conditions that others may be suffering with. However, I also feel that the academic world is rapidly inventing conditions and biological explanations for what in part may be just bad behavior. Take this statement for example:
The study found few people suffer from IED alone. More then 80 percent of those with IED also have some type of mood, anxiety, impulse control or substance use disorder.
Most people are surprised when they hear about IED. “People go, ‘There’s a name for it? There’s something you can do? And it works?'” said Kessler. “You don’t have to blame yourself for it — it’s a biological thing.”
It also sounds like a ready made defense for any number of crimes committed in a fit of rage, including murder. Another case of I’m not responsible!
Since all brain activity is a combination of chemical and/or electrical reactions, who draws the line to say that this activity is a chemical imbalance? Is someone who is constantly up and positive suffering from a chemical imbalance, just one that is more acceptable to society? In many cases I think this drive to define socially unacceptable behavior as a condition is driven by other more selfish imbalances, the need for fame and money. How many articles, interviews, and speeches will be given on IED and how many research funds will be available. Then there’s also the new drugs that will come to market to treat this condition. Millions and millions…follow the money.
When I was a child, my mother and father had a very effective way of adjusting my chemical imbalance when it caused bad behavior.
I am very skeptical of IED for the prior mentioned reasons..
If you disagree with my personal opinion be aware that I could suffer from a chemical imbalance of the brain and go off on you in an intermittent explosion of rage, or not. :)
UPDATE: 06/08/2006
There’s an interesting post in the Philadelphia Inquirer concerning this same subject. It would seem I’m not the only one who grows tired of bad behavior being ‘medicalized’.
Technorati Tags: Anger, Intermittent Explosive Disorder, Meandering Passage, Society
I am one of the largest providers of anger management classes in the nation. We provide anger management classes in two Los Angeles locations seven days each week. Most, if not all Courts in Los Angeles County refer exclusively to providers who use our curriculum.
During the last ten years, I can only think of two clients who would have been diagnosed as suffering from intermittent explosive disorder. One was also brain damaged and the second bi polar.
George: Of course people suffer from uncontrolled fits of anger and there is great value in learning the causes and providing training and treatment that you do for those affected. My concern is that dianosing people with anger management problems as IED will cloud the real causes and issues. There will be another layer added. You stated that in your experience the two people who would have been diagnosed as IED were suffering from other causes. Thanks for the comment.
IED sounds like another way to let people off the hook for their bad behaviorial choices. We as a nation seem so ready to celebrate bad behavior instead of holding people accountable for their actions. Whatever happened to personal accountability?
Holly: As you can see from my post I tend to agree with you. I was thinking the other day about how not only do we as individuals seem to lack a level of personal accountability but that we as a nation also seem to lack a level of national accountability. There was a study released a few days ago that indicated that we as Americans have fewer close personal friends then we use to. I wonder if this unraveling of close personal relationships and social experiences is also causing a feeling of isolation and therefore a lack of responsibility for anything or anyone else. Don’t have the answer there, but interesting thought.
I have a 13 year old boy who has IED. Are there any schools in the Southeast that deal wiht this issue?
Check out Meridell Achievement Center in Liberty Hill Texas
Marty: I personally don\’t know of any ones that specifically deal with IED. Has your son been been officially dianosed with IED? If so then you should talk to those that did the dianoses to see if they can recommend treatment. If he has NOT been dianosed then you may want to see your family doctor for references. You could also search on the Internet under anger management for someone who could provide additional information. Good luck!
Since this is a year from the last post, probably no one will read it, but what the hell.
I have a son who is very smart, very kind, and a well behaved person. He cooks wonderful meals with his grandmother. He can intellectualize and speak effectively about his emotions. At 17, he has already had 2 fairly serious relationships, one lasting a year. His realtionships were positive and the girls nice, with little fighting.
His father and I are both college educated, do not believe in spanking etc, and while divorced, were never inclined for arguments or fighting etc.
Yet he suffers from what can only be described as fits, and this has been getting worse as he gets older. He gets to a state where he has to destroy something. It is always his own property, and he never hurts anyone. He has spent hard earned money building up a computer, and much time, and yet still assaulted the thing enough to ruin it- time after time. He knows all the common techniques for controlling temper, and he tries them. They do not help.
The thing that really gets me is when I find him afterwards, and he is clearly in a temporary state of severe depression, wracked with guilt and self-loathing.
How could anyone, anyone at all deny there is something wrong here? Normal people do not cause themselves severe anguish like this repeatedly, and they don’t cost themselves this kind of money. He is normal in every other repect. I really cannot think otherwise than that there is a biological syndrome going on.
Clearly, he could get a lot more control over this thing by changing the way he thinks about the world, and this is the long term solution. However the level of anger he experiences, the overwhelming-ness of it- this I believe is physiological. Nothing else makes sense.
I have a very similar problem to your Son.
I try to control my IED problem by working out and eating Serotonin foods.
I did write about my problem earlier. I think Swimming Lifting Weights Martial Arts & Punching a punch bag is excellent way to alleviate the stress . Keeping active having a job and selective friends. Listening to tranquility music , Yoga meditation . Taking courses keeping mind occupied and counseling.
Has your son ever been on any medication along the lines of ritalin?
Hi Megan,
I always read comments no matter how old the original post is. Thank you for sharing your experience.
I have no doubt that what you are experiencing with your son is very real and exactly as you described. I know it must be hard seeing one you love suffer so.
I hope your son is able to find the help needed to cope with this. I would agree that it some cases, such as your son, it seems to be physiological.
Good luck.
I can see where you stand on this issue, as it being an excuse. However, I can also this as a serious medical condition. I’m glad I found this along with a few other articles, I have been trying to find something on this for a while. I have sort of had a temper,but a lot of kids do when their young a temper tantrum here, a tempter tantrum there,but nothin serious. However in the last six months I have had two outburst that could be described as IED. The most recent resulted in some (thankfully,minor)injuries to one of my friends. I couldn’t stop it, I couldn’t control myself and the only thought going through my mind was ‘don’t hurt her, don’t hurt her, don’t hurt her’. I still couldn’t do anything about it. no one belives me and she won’t talk to me. i tried to apologise,but she wouldn’t listen. I’m not using IED as an excuse, it is an answer to my question yes,but ‘I have IED’ is not a legit excuse for attacking her. I know I am responsible for my actions and it pains me to know what I did. I have recently moved, due to my fathers job neing transferred,but I’m scared to make friends. Everytime I see Isaac or Joseph or katie or any other students, who are very nice to me and wish to be friends, I can see it happening again. I don’t want to hurt them,but I fear another outburst. In my last one I injured and lost one of my best friends and that was when I thought I had it under control. So even though it hasn’t happened in a while, I knwo it could happen again, it drives me insane. I come home and unless I keep busy I can’t help thinking about it and wondering what in the world I’m going to do. Its not just bad behavior, yes I can yell sometimes, I am a teen, it happens,but this is more. I didn’t have a reason, if I did it was miniscule and I couldn’t control myslef. I couldn’t feel, I could barely think, I couldn’t control my body, I heard echos, like all noise was far off and I couldn’t see anything but white until I came to. When I did I didn’t know what had just happened,but it kills to find out what I did. IED isn’t an excuse, I stress that again, I hate that I am responsible for it even though I couldn’t help it. I am responsible for it, no matter how much I don’t want to admit it.
Megan, I read the post about your son and it is exactly the way I am. I am 18 and the older I get, the worse these fits get. I am a good kid, I stay out of trouble, don’t drink, or smoke. I’m a great athlete, very dedicated, very polite and respectful, and have a great, long lasting relationship with a beautiful girl. I’m very upbeat, but when I have an outburst, the feeling is undescribable really. I get this terrible feeling in my throat and gut and HAVE to hit something or throw something. I lose all sense of right and wrong to be honest. I’ve broken phones, controllers, gaming systems, punched holes in doors, walls, and it’s cost me some friends along the way unfortunately. I’ve tried everything in the book in terms of trying to control it but nothing works. ANYTHING can trigger it, no matter how small. Afterwards, I feel extremely depressed, tired, and sometimes it almost hurts if that makes any sense. I often break down in tears and cannot really function for hours after. It takes everything I have in me to not become violent towards people(when they are the cause). I hate it, and it makes me hate myself afterwards. It is very real, and I wish I could do something about it.. I don’t know, it really is terrible, and it leaves me feeling helpless. I just wanted to post here to let people know it is very real, and give people an opinion of someone with similar issues. Thanks for reading…I needed to get it off my chest.
Thanks for shareing. As a mom with a daughter of 12 who can’t quit put to words her own frustrations or feelings its helps me to somewhat know what she maybe feeling at her end. As frustrated as I often get patching holes and replacing chairs and chasing her siblings out of the room and trying my best to make sure she don’t hurt herself in one of her ” meltdowns”. It hurts to see this from my end. Helpless. But from ur eyes it helps me see something more then a melt down. She was diagnosed by doctors, and 4child psychiatrist and currently doing allergy testing to rule that out. After a few years a pharmaceuticals and bad adverse reactions we had decided to do all natural health remedies. So far she’s doing better. She still has a few occasions but far and few. We find nonalcoholic vanilla helps for soothing fits and calming. Aside from it being not a REAL disorder It is ignorance to believe it isn’t. Every year there’s a new VIRUS the human body is getting immune to many things and many things are adapting and creating new life every day. Microscopic and animal alike. Whose to say there isn’t when the proof is right in front of you in the form of a child or adult that’s out of normal behavior?? Just my 2 cents.
Hi Tim,
I am going to give you advice; I hope this doesn’t offend. I hear your words and the feelings that go with them and wish very much I can help in anyway. I should just let you explore your feelings but good advice can help too [sometimes].
First the good news: IED does get substantially better with age, namely by about 24 when the brain finishes maturing. Also the techniques you learn to cope now will do you good even later on. The real lesson to absorb into your soul is “this is a problem to be solved”. It is not a statement of you as a person. It is not an unchanging feature of you you have to live with. You can and will get a handle on this at some point in your life. You may not get to control like an on/ off switch, but you can nonetheless find improvement, even now.
Second based on my son’s experience, getting your overall mood to be positive makes a world of difference. That is: if you are alone too much, this will make it worse. Also, if you have no good feeling about your immediate future or are very worried about upcoming changes, it will get a lot worse. If you feel stuck or trapped in anyway, you will have very little ability to get the IED under control.
At 18 you are perhaps just graduating so you are looking at a different future than the life you have lived. That can be a very rough phase. Many people go through various emotional reactions to being forced to change their lives and start something new to them. This would be operating in the background. It would not be something you think about every day. It would be something that later you look back and say- yeah, that 6 months/ year I was kind of depressed/ angrier than usual/ fretting a lot.
It is kind of like lots of disorders: if your life is working in general you can keep things under control. The mroe your life is out of whack, the more the disorder shows itself.
My son is much happier in general now a year later; he is alone a lot less and likes the look of his future. And he hasn’t had an episode in months.
So the final piece of advice: for my son at least, the cures are a lot like the ones for depression. If you can stand to read books, read The Feeling Good Handbook. That has a ton of practical thoughts you can think that will help anyone I think figure out how to make their lives better for them.
OK you may think that i am crazy, but I believe that IED is real. yes I believe that some people just weren’t raised right, and its just an excuse, but for others its real, and its more than just a “temper problem”. my mom has IED and she has been on Zoloft for 2years now and its markedly better, her IED also came coupled with panic-like attacks in large crowds (crowded stores, parades etc.)
so in conclusion i believe some people are just being medicated instead of taking responsibility for their actions, but others honestly do have IED.
i realize that this post is over 2 years old but eh i don’t care i know i’m right.
@Nancy J: I certainly don’t think you’re crazy and I do believe there are often real chemical or physical reasons for many cases of IED.
However, I also know that sometimes symptoms have become officially labeled as a “named illness” when a drug company has a new drug they’re trying to market. Just watch the drug company ads on TV these days.
I believe all avenues should be explored when dealing with a illness not just starting down the list of latest and greatest new drugs.
I don’t believe we really disagree and perhaps my original post was a bit too harsh.
Best of luck to your Mom. Regards
Hi I suffer from mild IED I take medication for it 3 times a day but this condition is something that really can not be helped you take medication to calm your nervous system and your brain down but occassionally I do suffer attacks and I have to be locked in a room with no objections in, please do not critise people with with condition as it really can not be helped
@Alex Thomas: I believe you when you say you suffer from a condition that causes the symptoms you describe and that you have to take medication for it. I’m sorry you’re having to suffer with this. But that doesn’t mean that everyone who suddenly has a burst of anger should be labeled IED.
IMHO, taking a symptoms such as sudden bursts of anger and labeling it a named disorder (IED) is more about money and business then treatment.
Drug companies stand to make a lot more money when they apply for federal grants/funds to treat or cure a “named disorder.” They can also can charge patients more for the named drugs they market. Often a drug company will create a drug first, test what it does and then lobby the medical community to name the illness or disorder it’s to be used for.
Once these named disorders are “official” it’s very easy to toss someone into these neat categories…oh they’ve got IED, when in reality what they have is a lot of normal anger and no responsible parents to discipline them.
Like I said…it’s just my opinion. I wish you well.
I understand the main stream commentary on this topic sees it as an excuse for bad behavior. I would suggest that these comments come from people that have not actually experienced or witnessed a true explosive rage episode. I am not talking about an angry outburst, or typical toddler tantrum. I am talking about a “rage” . . . an anger that is uncontrollable in every sense of the word – it is an almost “out of body” experience.
I would recommend your read the following article and research this further if you are witnessing these “rages” in your child.
http://psychservices.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/54/8/1166-a
I guess you can say I enjoyed coming across this site. I too, do not care for the massive labeling this country seems to enjoying doing to give anyone who wants it, a free ride. That being said, my youngest was diagnosed last year with IED at the age of 6 (that and a list of other disorders) after 2 week long stint at a psych ward for adolescents. Sadly, I only came upon the diagnosis after reading thru a denial letter from a center that tests for the Autism spectrum. Why the Dr’s didn’t inform us of this diagnosis upon his release is beyond me!
After the smallest bit of research I’ve done so far on IED, I now feel, as a parent, a bit of relief. Its amazing what a diagnosis of anything can do! We have been going thru YEARS of shear HELL trying to figure out what is wrong with our youngest son. He can be so sweet, loving and considerate then out of no where will just flip out screaming obscenities, attacking, throwing objects, etc etc….having a now 7yr old with 3 holes in his walls plus various other vandalized items is a bit unnerving….but not as much as when he’s coming at you, or someone else with a sharp object!
…Wait, then having the said child have no recollection of the rages is more unnerving!
IED is real.
@Gwen: Thank you for the comment and for sharing your experiences. This original post was written in 2006 and since then I’ve come to believe that IED as a condition is real but I’m not sure that everyone who’s labeled as such is accurate. From the description of the behavior of your son he sounds like a fit for IED and I wish you and him the best of luck.
Regards
I JUST read about IED for the first time. I’ve been trying to control my temper/anger for my whole adult life (i am 57). Most of the time i’m OK. But when I fly off it’s awful, and always directed at my family. What bothers me most is I have been like this since before I can remember. My Dad told me when I was 4 years old I built a snowman and 3 teenagers knocked it down. He said I chased them down our road screaming at them in rage as they laughed. And he said I didn’t cry about it, just went back and tried to fix the snowman. My Mom mentioned my temper to me when I was about 11 or 12 and I blew up at her saying I didn’t need a doctor. ALL of my elementary school report cards said something about my “bad temper”. I’m not trying to justify my rage at all but i’m sure going to ask my doctor if there is anything he can recommend that might get to the possible biological cause of my anger. If it’s just bad behavior on my part I’ll start working harder on that and getting help. But if there IS something imbalanced inside me i sure wish I would have listened to my Mom all those years ago.
A Pdoc described a “rage episode” as a sort of seizure that happens as a result of a charge in the brain. My son is on Trileptal, an anti-seizure med, and it has been made a remarkable difference in our lives. His rage episodes have diminished and he has even been able to “come down” from his anger at times. This was NOT possible in the prior to the meds. @Fred Higginbotham –
Maybe a lot of people are developing these problems due to lack of fats in the diet and the increase in sugar and carbs in the daily diet?I was diagnosed a year ago with IED as from the age of nine I had horrible rages ( which I couldn’t remember) on and off for several years. I’ve taken anti-depressants, but they didn’t work too well. I found out that low fat high carb/sugar diets are bad for the brain as I remember that around the age I started to have these rages when the pediatrician started telling my family to cut most of the fat out of my diet. My IED got worse as more fat was cut out when I gained weight from the meds I was taking. I’ve been drinking %5 milk instead of skim milk, and every day I try to get a tablespoon of olive or fish oil in my diet along with enough saturated fats ( its the hydrogenated ones which are bad for your brain). Also I’ve cut carbs back as much as I can.
I have a 9 year old son who has been diagnosed with IED. (diagnosis was made by EEG) I can not imagine what my child feels living with this “beast”. He is a very loving, social and thoughtful child. But, when the wires get kinked in his cranium, all hell breaks loose. It is quite difficult to pattern your life around having an exit plan at every outing. We even have code for his moods, I have opted to use the Terror Alert Colors. I am not a violent person, was not raised in a violent family. Having a violent child makes one feel hostage in their own home. To those posting here who have it, surrond yourself with positive people! For us parents of children with it, we have to love them like the day they were born! And for those of you who do not “buy” it…please be humble and reconsider your stand. I assure you it is a real issue.
Hi, my husband has violent outbursts and I’m wondering if it’s related to something chemical. He grew up in a home where his dad had a temper and the men in his family are also known for this. So, he learned it. He also got into a lot of fights as a kid and his mother hit him to control him so he’s basically got the recipe for someone to behave violently, but he tells me that at times his adrenaline is raging through him and he doens’t know what to do about it. Any slight (real or imagined) can set him off. This along with his family history makes me wonder if his body is producing too much adrenaline when he’s stressed? Is there such a thing?
I started suffering from IED in my 40s. I must say its awful.
With me is the fact that I moved to a town where you are isolated and if you are not from
this town you are totally not welcome.
Hoever the country I left was full of violence and I had enough of it hence I moved from one type of hell to another. My IED is awful someone looks at me I explode someone says anything I disagree or feel insulted or intimidated I explode. I no longer go outside I stay indoors all the time. Ive lost several jobs due to awful outbursts. I dont even go shopping I get shopping via internet. Yes I am having counselling and I take natural remedies like calms forte. In my teens I took anti depressants and I took them for many years coming off them was a nightmare but
the side effects were worse. So I do counselling take vitamin B6 & B12 and Cod liver oil. Eat bannas, tofu , oily fish, & mushrooms for natural serotonin look at links below:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serotonin-
http://www.glycemic-index.org/serotonin-foods.html
http://www.social-anxiety-disorder-resources.com/bvitamins.html
http://www.evitamins.com/product.asp?pid=2647
I am hoping in time the counselling and my natural remedies plus the fact that I am eating lots of fruit & vegtables and avoiding rubbish food like sweets cakes fried food greasy food etc will help.
I am considering Yoga & Meditation on days that I have confidence to go out. IED is a very scary thing I dont wish to end up in jail due too a violent outburst this is a very painful & shameful disorder . I always run away literally from any difficult situation usually at home I punch the wall have explosive rage shout & smash up plates etc which can end up being expensive.
No one chooses this behaviour and it is no excuse to bad behaviour. I dont wish to be a valium junky . I lift weights and go once a week to gym when gym is empty now to avoid People due to ied. I truly believe with me it was caused by many years of being ignored & by childhood abuse.
These days I pray a lot I am thinking of joining a Buddhist Temple. Anywhere where Ican find Peace & Tranquility.
Problem is if IED is related to diet certain foods which might be good for one person might be bad for another. I have to go easy on soy ( I only eat fermented soy products as they don’t give me much of a problem), and sugar, even in the form of fruit, can be too much for my system. I notice eating certain foods like cheese and beef seems to calm my system. I know a guy whose bipolar who says eating red meet seems to balance out his system, but certain fruits and vegatables causes his mood swings.
IED-is based on physical actions only or both physical and verbal?thanks
My son was finally diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome and Intermitten Explosive Disorder two years ago. When the doctor told me he had IED I started laughing it was such a relief to finally have someone recognize what it really was. He has had this since the day he was born. He is very intelligent, and loving, but when he has an episode he can’t stop, his eyes change color, and he’s in an uncontrollable rage, afterward he cries, he says he’s sorry a hundred times, he’s hungry and weak. I took him off his medication in December, my reasoning is that if he can’t feel what is really going on how can he learn how to controll it, (mostly learning to walk away till he cools off or just ignore people) The medication DID NOT make this problem go away, it made his rage half of what it was. These medicines are not approved for children, He is doing much better, he still has episodes, and at times I just have to leave him alone, but he is much happier and healthier.
Hi im 36 and i have IED also but i have adhd also. I cant control mine either. But i dont feel anything when it comes on i just blow up an it can be over the dumbest thing. I could eat something thats to hot and just tear it up and yell at it and be pissed off four hours about it. I cam step on a toy an throw it across the room and yell at it. My kids can do the smallest thing like put a ish in the wrong place and i cant fin it. Then im just pissed off about it slaming cabnets and everthing and yelling at them. It sucks to feel this way when you have no control its a zero to burst. I can be happy one min then turn around and blow. I also have been a cutter my whole arm is one big scar from stiches. I have three dr’s. and i am starting a new med so hope it works for me. Sometimes i wonder if im just crazy.
Hi, I’m glad to have come across such a site. Not too sure if this pertainsto my mothers situation but certainly desperate for help, info, guidance ,advice, etc….this cant continue to go on for much longer. Ok im a 36yr old wife/ mother of 2 sons. My older brother(by 2yrs), myself & younger brother (by 2yrs as well) grew up iin grandmother home whom has recently passed, lived with aunt & her daughter our cousin, same age as me) all of our arents were functioning drug addicts (oxymoron by far lol). Had drug addicts, sellers or users amound me my whole life. All has since turned their lives around & havent usedbin decades thank goodness. Ok so parents move from up North to down south for freah new start, all was going perfect. Then when i turned 14yr my father died from hep c, cirrhosis of the liver. Much less then half a yr after his death both aunt & mother tested possitive as well, that was 24yrs ago. So my moms always been opinionated, blunt, “tell it like it is” woman. I used to tell her God forgot to install her brain to mouth filter. But here we are March, 2013. Shes got hypothyroidism (diagnosed yrs ago n taking meds), has emphysema (from smoking cigs) joints & body pains, type 2 diabetes(on insulin) but in past year, if she disagrees with something you say or do or not done her way, give a look (any look), make a face, breath wrong, she goes from sweet, caretaker type, reading bible daily,to the most evil malicious, spiteful, vulgar mouthed person. She gets in an exposive fit of rage verbally attacking whoever pissed her off & she doesnt care if Jesus hisself is standing next to her, in the past few months to where its way out of control. She cursed out my grandmother, her mom. Sayingvthings like, “Shut up old lady, you were a wh#re when i was little. “everyone knows how bad of a mom you were. How shes calling grandmas dr & have her committed to an old home. Just says evilst things. Please tellbme if this is IED??? Like i said, shes always had a bit of an attitude “dont mess with me or even look at me the wrong way attitude my whole life, but was controllable, but now everyone walks on eggshells around her as to not risk settin her anger or verbal attacks to set off, so instead i worry thats theres something more going on. Her primary dr is useless & we dontknow where to turn, tell or ask. Sorry super long letter, we all love my mom & very scared at same time wanting to help her but not know where to turn for help or how to even seek it out. Our family dont believe in shrinks, i tried tellin its best for the family, i need help. I gotta do something to help her figure & fix wats wrong. So thanks in advanced.
I’m so glad to see I’m not alone. I’ve been wondering lately about IED and if that’s what he may have. I have a 15yr. old son that has been acting out since he’s been in kindergarten. He’s been to several different doctors and physiologists that kept telling me that he has adhd. Tried every adhd med out there under the moon, none that really made any diffence. In fifth grade is when he REALLY started having uncontrollable anger issues and school had enough, so I took him to a different physiologist and physiatrist, he was then diagnosed with bi-polar but he don’t have “manic highs” of it, (that’s what is making me wonder if it’s not IED), adhd and odd. He was put on Wellbutrin, Lamictal and several other meds that came and went, such as Abilify, Zoloft and a few others. But nothing is working and his current psych. doc. just ups his Wellbutrin and Lamictal UGH…
My son has been kicked out of the public school for VERY aggressive behaviors toward staff and students ranging from throwing desks, chairs, books etc. to threating to kill someone ( no one in general, but just so upset that he said “I want to kill someone”) to punching a student who accidently bumped into him, to stabbing a boy in the leg with a pen (which that goodness it only broke the skin) because the boy told him to shut the heck up. So, he was sent to a alternative school and he was kicked out of there last year for violent behaviors against students for minor things such as tapping their pen on the desk or talking when they shouldn’t be. I have made a appointment to see a different Phyc. doc. since I cant get anywhere with the one he is seeing now and HOPE and PRAY he do some different testing and give me some answers to what the heck is going on. My son has already been in the court system to many times to count, and has been admitted into a physc. hospital for a week to see if they can figure him out but that was a complete waste of time and money. They didn’t do ANYTHING for him.
What I would like to find out before his Dr. appoint . in a few weeks is what meds have worked best for everyone because truthfully what he is on now has to go and start over with something different. My son may be only 15 but he is a “big” boy, 6’1″ and 190lbs. He WILL hurt someone severely one of these days which I’ve told every dr. and physiologist he has seen but no one has taking me seriously yet, considering his past.. So I’m trying to hang in there and hope so see a little light at the end of the tunnel..
My son had been on an anti seizure med since he was 10. Trileptal (Oxcarbazepine-Generic). Please contact me if you would like to talk.
Lori– did the Trileptal help your son with his rages? What kinds of side effects? What happens when the dose wears off? Thanks!
Yes, it is still working. He just turned 16. We visit the pdoc every 6 months for dosage changes because as he was growing, we had some breakthrough. But all is stabilized. No noticeable side effects. Just needs to up his sodium intake because the meds effect that.
I would just like to say that I am a sufferer of this condition. It is not fun. I usually do it when I’m by myself. What usually sets me off is something really simple that puts me over the edge in relation and in addition to the other stresses of life. This condition started with me at approximately age 14, and it has continued to get worse over the years. I am now in my 60’s. I went through a lot of trauma at a very young age–losing my mother at age 6 and being molested by my father. I have sought counseling and treatment for over 30 years, to no avail. Even on Paxil (an anti-depressant), I still had outbursts. Once it starts, I can’t seem to stop it. I have symptoms coming on before an actual outburst. It is certainly not a pleasant way to live. I would give anything if I could get the help I need. No one really understands this condition. Does this make it less legitimate? No one understands what causes breast cancer–does that make it less legitimate? Just because this is of the mind, then it’s something people who don’t have the problem can’t understand, and they judge and think it’s purely bad behavior. As a sufferer, I highly disagree!! What’s even worse it the remorse, guilt, shame, and depression and fatigue that development soon after the incident (at least in my case). I am normally a very nice and friendly person. Most people would be simply appalled to know I have these attacks. It’s so easy for those who don’t suffer to pass judgment and refuse to at least try to understand.
Nancy, thank you for sharing and providing a more insight into what it’s like for those who suffer with this condition. I wish you the very best.
While I try to remain open minded and non critical of the opinions of those who have never had their lives destroyed by this disorder it is difficult as both a parent of a child with IED and a health care professional to comprehend that in this day and age, disorders of the brain are viewed and treated differently than disorders of the rest of our body. While I am certain that the term IED will be overused and abused, as are many legitimate medical disorders, the reality still exists that there are many people who suffer from this disorder and should not also have to suffer the indignation that they are thought to be “making it up” to excuse bad behavior.
We are at a time in history where much research is being done on brain injuries, the long term effects of single or repeated concussions (for example, those received during sporting events as children and adults as well as trauma), the injury to the brain from chemo and/or radiation, etc. There is much to learn but finally the questions are being asked and are being seriously evaluated
We have been very blessed to have found mental health care providers that recognize and acknowledge the difference between behavioral and non-behavioral patterns and that there are vastly different approaches to treating each. Because of these providers my child as well as my family have had our lives restored to a level of “normalcy” that we never expected was possible.
There is hope and treatment for those suffering from IED. Hopefully someday there will also be acceptance.
I just found out today, January 20, 2015, that Intermittent Explosive (or Rage) Disorder is a dissociative state and has something to do with the amygdala in the brain. It could also be caused by pent up rage from childhood as an extended temper tantrum of the arrested little child inside the adult who was hurt–a PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) reaction to the fear of being hurt.
Glad I came across this. My husband has long felt that he suffers from ADHD however, he has been prone to violent outbursts so I knew that it was something more. Nothing in particular sets him off many times, sometimes it might be just a look someone gives or the tone of voice that one uses when speaking with him. He lashes out at me or whomever might be there, punches holes in things and becomes verbally aggressive. The episodes last under 30 minutes and, like so many others that have posted to this thread, becomes almost depressed and unforgiving to himself when he “comes back around”. At times he almost blacks-out and does not remember what he’s said or done. He also came from a childhood where he saw a lot of violence in many different environments, and I’ll leave it at that. He attempted a month or so back to get counseling. He has a job where he doesn’t need to be on a lot of meds that will cause side effects. He wanted to talk to someone but all they wanted to do was give him a bunch of meds and send him on his way. No one really wanted to take the time to talk with him but that’s what you get in a smaller city. So, we sat down and came up with another plan of trying alternative medicine, namely acupressure. I must say that over the last couple of weeks that he’s been going for treatment, he has been calmer, happier and is now able to recognize when he’s feeling “the stress” coming on and takes the time to find a quiet place to relax himself back down. I highly recommend this method!
This comment is for “Anonymous”. You speak in your post about your husband coming from a background of violence in his home. Could he also have been sexually abused as a child? Sometimes these rage attacks are a dissociative state, which is a reaction to something that was done to him back in his past, and he’s being triggered by whatever causes him to be out of control. He as a child probably felt out of control during certain times when traumas were happening, and he was in a state of fear. My tantrums stem from a dissociative state that I felt as a young girl when I was about to be sexually abused, and the fear and trauma were so great, I dissociated. I’m glad he’s doing well. I also see an acupuncturist, but I’ve never addressed this with him. Perhaps I should or could.
I have gone on a ‘NO PESTICIDE’ Diet…. and I must say both me and my wife are flabbergasted!!!
A few years ago I thought that I had already gone ‘NO PESTICIDE’! I had started buying organic items that contain little to no pesticides. My IED settled down but was still there once a week or so(versus every other day)!
Both me and my wife took another look at what I was eating. I was eating a lot of pork and beef. Pork and beef are fed GMO pesticide filled corn!!! I stopped both, only eat grass fed beef, and have stopped pork completely because apparently there is very little organic pork available!!!
I have not had an IED episode in 3 weeks now! Sure I get angry, but it is just normal anger easy to control and blow off! I miss bacon….. But hey I don’t miss the IEDs!!!!!!!
I don’t really care if anyone here believes me or my experience, but food TRULY is the best cure! And our current world of food is very FUCKED UP!!!