In today's modern society, drivers are faced with tension-filled moments even in during the shortest of drives. We are consumed with anxiety over financial troubles, relationship difficulties, and the daily grind that is our work and personal life. It is very easy to feel out of control and when we carry that anger onto the road; it is a recipe for road rage.

The term road rage began appearing in news articles around the mid to late 1980's. Less than 10 years later, acts of road rage had reached epidemic proportions and the term itself became a common household reference. New and experienced drivers alike were cautioned to avoid provoking another driver because dangerous personalities could be lurking anywhere.

The Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary defines road rage as "a motorist's uncontrolled anger that is usually provoked by another motorist's irritating act and is expressed in aggressive or violent behavior."

Road rage is listed as a mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association. As a mental condition, road rage has specific symptoms. To be able to avoid giving in to this condition, motorists first must recognize the symptoms of road rage as they threaten to occur.

Basic road rage symptoms:

*excessive honking

*yelling obscenities or derogatory remarks

*making obscene finger or hand gestures

*excessive flashing of headlights

*tailgating

*cutting off another driver or preventing another driver from merging

Extreme road rage symptoms:

*striking another vehicle with a projectile object

*bumping, or striking another vehicle with your vehicle

*running another driver off the road

*engaging in physical violence such as discharging a firearm or other weapon

When a motorist has just been downsized at work and then is cut off in traffic on the way home, negative and angry feelings surface. It is easy to give in to road rage when it feels like the world is crushing you from every side. We want to lash out, yell, and try to get control in an uncontrollable situation. As a driver, we must concede that we cannot control how other motorists drive and behave. However, we can control how we react to their behavior and avoid a road rage situation.

When anger has bubbled and a fit of road rage is one obscene gesture away, don't give in. Try to diffuse the negativity and avoid road rage with the following tips.

* Count to 10 and breathe.

Taking five deep breathes can actually

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