On unpacking anger -> resentment -> bitterness

An understanding of bitterness...

 It can be really hard to see when anger turns into resentment and resentment turns into bitterness when you're traversing it.

anger -> resentment -> bitterness

 Someone who is bitter is angry and unhappy because they cannot forget bad things that happened in the past. There's no one cause of resentment, but most cases involve an underlying sense of being mistreated or wronged by another person.

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Signs you might struggle with bitterness

1. You have imaginary conversations
2. You replay a real conversation or experience over and over in your head
3. You feel the need to tell someone what he/she did
4. You are easily offended by this person
5. You have strong negative reactions to things they say and do around you
6. You can remember the details of things he/she said from months or years ago
7. You are keeping a list of offenses

 OMG that was me of the past!!! I am guilty of harboring long term anger. Couple that with remaining feelings of love and a desire to return to the way things were before it all turned to shit, even I figured out that all the grief was a dream for what I wished for that never was.

How to get over / through it

1. Get distance 
2. Let yourself feel
3. Talk to someone
4. Understand where the resentment came from
5. Remind yourself that mistakes happen
6. Work toward forgiveness

 It's hard to admit flaws. I'm still unpacking if bitterness is a flaw or not. Is it something built into one's character? I'm thinking not. I know it's helpful to remember that bitterness is a RESPONSE to REAL pain and hurt. It took eight years post divorce to be released from it for me. And now I've had four and a half years of freedom and peace.