Hershel Korngut: How Alcohol Fuels the Rage You Can't Control
- Hershel Korngut
- Mar 6
- 5 min read
Have you ever seen someone drink a few glasses and then completely lose it? One second, they were laughing and talking. Next, they were shouting, breaking things, or saying words that cut deep. Maybe that person was you. And maybe the next morning, you sat there asking yourself, why do I always go there?
There is a real answer to that question. And it is not that you are a bad person.
Hershel Korngut has worked with people in this exact situation for over ten years. He is a Certified Anger Management Specialist and a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor. He has seen this pattern hundreds of times. And what he will tell you is simple: alcohol does not just make feelings bigger. It destroys the thing inside you that stops rage before it starts.
Let's get into exactly how that works, who is more at risk, and what real help looks like.
What Drinking Does to Your Brain
People think alcohol makes you relaxed. That is only part of what happens.
The first thing alcohol does is quiet the part of your brain that keeps you in check. That is the part that says — wait, think before you speak. That says, slow down, this is not worth it. Once that part goes quiet, the other part of your brain takes over. And that part only knows one thing — react.
So when something small bothers you while you are drinking, your brain treats it like a big problem. But there is nothing left inside to pump the brakes. You go from zero to furious in seconds. You say things you would never say sober. You do things you cannot explain the next day.
That is not a weakness. That is what alcohol literally does inside your head.
Why Some People Rage and Others Just Sleep
Not everyone who drinks gets angry. So what makes some people go straight to rage?
It is about what you are already carrying. If you have old pain you never dealt with, anger you keep pushing down, or stress you never let out — alcohol pulls all of that to the surface at once. It does not make new feelings. It rips the lid off the ones already sitting there.
People who already have anger problems before they drink are much more likely to blow up when they do. Hershel sees this over and over. Clients say they were fine before they started drinking. But fine just meant they were holding it together by a thread. Alcohol cut that thread.
Things that make it worse:
Old pain or trauma you never properly worked through
Stress that has been building with no way out
Drinking to feel better instead of talking about what is wrong
Not really knowing what you feel or why you feel it
Mix these things with alcohol and the anger does not just come out. It comes out like a fire.
What It Does to the People Around You
This kind of rage never stays inside you. It hits everything and everyone close to you.
Partners stop feeling safe at home. Kids go quiet and nervous. Friends slowly disappear. Trust does not break all at once it wears down little by little, every time it happens again. Apologies start to mean nothing. People stop waiting for things to get better.
Work takes a hit, too. One bad night at the wrong moment can change how people see you for good. All the hard work you put in can get wiped out by one thing you cannot take back.
And sometimes it becomes a legal problem. Courts deal with cases every day where alcohol and anger created a situation that could not be ignored. That is where court-approved anger management programs come in, not just to meet a legal requirement, but to actually fix what is broken.
Why Fixing Only One Side Does Not Work
Most people try to fix one thing. Either they stop drinking or they work on their anger. Very few do both. But these two problems are tied together. One keeps the other alive.
Stop drinking, but ignore the anger, the pain, and the stress that pushed you to drink are still there. Work on the anger, but keep drinking; every bad night wipes out your progress.
This is why what Hershel Korngut does is different. He holds certification in both anger management and alcohol and drug counseling. He does not look at these as two separate things. He looks at the full person and works on both at the same time. That is where real results come from.
Things That Actually Help
If both alcohol and anger are problems in your life, here are steps that genuinely work.
First, start paying attention. Notice when your anger comes up. Notice if drinking was part of it. Write it down. Once you start seeing the pattern clearly, you can start breaking it.
Second, have a plan ready before you need it. Decide what you will do when things start building, before they build. Walk away. Call someone. Take a few slow breaths. A plan made in a calm moment is worth ten times more than trying to think clearly when you are already at your limit.
Third, get real support. Whether that is private coaching, group sessions, or a structured program, working with someone who understands both anger and alcohol gives you tools you cannot build alone.
Signs You Need Help With Both
Here are honest signs that both things are a problem:
You feel terrible after drinking episodes, but nothing changes
People you love say they feel scared or uncomfortable around you when you drink
Alcohol and anger have already caused legal trouble for you
You drink when you are stressed, sad, or angry, and you do it often
Your anger feels completely different and much worse when alcohol is involved
Seeing yourself here is not a reason to feel bad. It is a reason to move.
This Can Change
In the moment, alcohol rage feels impossible to stop. Your brain is not working with you. Everything feels ten times bigger than it is. The tools to calm down simply are not there.
But this is not forever. People change this every day. Hershel has watched it happen more times than he can count, people who walked in feeling completely out of control now live calm, steady lives with people they love and a clear sense of who they are.
If this is where you are right now, do not sit on it. Take the first step. Help is real, and it works.
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