# Does ranting in the Pit help? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 25, 2002, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668 "2002-11-25T14:46:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/1 "2002-11-25T14:46:17Z")
As any Doper regular or lurker knows, posts in the BBQ Pit get pretty heated. Heck, even the topics use profanity and other heated language. So I’ve got a question about all that. Do people here consider ranting in the Pit to be helpful? I know that posts in the Pit won’t solve the original problem. So I’m asking if people find the release of anger in a relatively safe area to be therapeutic, in that at least they get their anger out of their system instead of repressing it. And this right after I started my first Pit rant… ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/2 "2002-11-25T15:17:19Z")
Occasionally. Rants about outside issues may allow one to blow off steam, sure. And occasionally there’s advice forthcoming that will help. Rants against other posters can become real slugfests. There can be a meeting of the minds if both posters discuss it in good faith. But how often does that really happen? ---
**Author:** ![IzzyR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/2acd7d/32.png) [@IzzyR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IzzyR)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/3 "2002-11-25T15:33:43Z")
No links offhand. But I believe psycologists have long believed and taught that venting was therapeutic, but that this belief has been increasingly questioned in recent years. Personally, I am inclined to believe that dealing with ordinary frustrations of life by venting is a bad idea. But that if confronted with a uniquely bad situation it might be worthwhile. ---
**Author:** ![cuauhtemoc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecb155/32.png) [@cuauhtemoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cuauhtemoc)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/4 "2002-11-25T15:37:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by IzzyR \* > \*\*Personally, I am inclined to believe that dealing with ordinary frustrations of life by venting is a bad idea. But that if confronted with a uniquely bad situation it might be worthwhile. \*\* A bad idea in what sense? Has your life been diminished in any way by some of the lamer, more mundane Pit threads? I recently posted a very angry rant in the Pit and felt better afterwards, if that helps answer the OP’s question. ---
**Author:** ![IzzyR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/2acd7d/32.png) [@IzzyR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IzzyR)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/5 "2002-11-25T15:51:19Z")
[Venting Anger Tied to More Aggression](http://www.mercola.com/1999/apr/11/venting_anger_tied_to_more_aggression.htm) > [@](#): > > In the movie “Analyze This,” the advice Billy Crystal gives Robert DeNiro – to vent his anger by punching a pillow – is all wrong, according to a trio of psychologists who recently studied anger and aggression. Investigators found that people who vent their anger by hitting a punching bag are more likely later to strike out at the human object of their anger or an innocent bystander. > [@](#): > > Popular belief in the catharsis theory remains strong despite the theory’s dismal record in research findings. Catharsis – the so-called therapeutic purging of pent-up feelings or emotions by expressing those feelings – was popular with Aristotle, then Freud, and now ‘pop’ psychologists and the media, but has little scientific validity. One likely reason for the continued widespread belief in catharsis is that the mass media continue to endorse the view that expressing anger or aggressive feelings is healthy, constructive and relaxing, whereas restraining oneself creates internal tension that is unhealthy and bound to lead to an eventual blowup. (For a lengthier treatment, see [Does Venting Anger Feed or Extinguish the Flame?](http://129.186.143.73/faculty/bbushman/PSPB02.pdf)) But I think if a person finds himself temporarily in a terrible situation in which he is likely to take some immediate negative action, it is possible that venting his anger will allow for a temporary and harmless release of the anger, which may tide him over until he can regain self-control ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/6 "2002-11-25T22:12:52Z")
Venting in the Pit has had noticeably positive results for me at least twice. The first time was last January, so the threads no longer exist, but I can give you a summary. After a bruising encounter with my employers Employee Assistance Program, I went to the Pit to vent my frustration, not really expecting anything to come of it. A bunch of people not only exchanged their horror stories with me, but gave me a lot of support and encouragement. As a result of some of the things they said, I started[Cecil’s Place](http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Cecils_Place/), a support group for Dopers with clinical depression. The second time, I called out another poster for what I considered a particularly offensive comment. This person’s e-mail address was private, and I was in high enough dudgeon that I had to take some sort of action. Thanks to exchanges in that Pit thread and private e-mails initiated by her at my request, we were able to get a better idea of where each other were coming from, and our differences with regard to that issue were resolved. I was raised not to show anger, and am a little afraid when I do. Ranting in the Pit has given me the freedom to do so, and presented real solutions on a few occaisions. It’s also a safe way for me to let off steam. Of course you don’t want to know what color I turn when I find myself typing **f-** Forget it. I can’t do it!! :o CJ ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/7 "2002-11-26T15:52:14Z")
Long time ago, I read the Pit, but no longer do so, as I have tried to give up childish things & find better outlets for my anger, assuming of course, that I actually have some. When I don’t have much, then reading the Pit sure gives me some. These are the two reasons I don’t use the Pit anymore. Sometimes I get redirected there if a post is sent there. I once searched a years worth of posts in the Pit for ‘handy’ & there were something like 300 subjects with that word. tsk. I do think that it’s much more emotionally mature to confront someone face-to-face with something. I find it quite emotionally immature to attack someone under cover of anonymity by using the Pit. But that’s just me. ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/8 "2002-11-26T17:23:16Z")
It’s gratifying at times to hear people agree with you, or feel equally wronged or annoyed. So it’s good from that standpoint. But I think whether or not it’s truly cathartic varies with the individual. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/9 "2002-11-26T17:51:14Z")
For me, sometimes I’m not looking for an answer, just to let off some steam. Also, if it’s something a lot of other people have experienced (bad customer service, etc.), lots of folks jump in and agree, and that feels validating. I can’t imagine myself ever posting a rant against another Doper, cuz I don’t want to offend. I’d rather try to resolve the issue, or respectfully agree to disagree. ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/10 "2002-11-26T18:34:24Z")
I have never started a pit rant, nor been the subject of one, although I do try to contribute at times. I read them to learn new insults and vitriolic phrases. I know that this may offend many people, and it is not my intent to belittle the pain, anger, etc. the pitters are feeling, but I love a good rant, they can be highly amusing, and informative. I know words, and phrases, that I would never have learned without the pit. Asshat… too funny. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-ranting-in-the-pit-help/138668/11 "2002-11-26T18:37:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by cjhoworth \* > \*\*As a result of some of the things they said, I started[Cecil’s Place](http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Cecils_Place/), a support group for Dopers with clinical depression. > > CJ \*\* This link really, really oughta be in your sig. I had no idea it existed.