Ellis is one of the founding fathers of cognitive behavioral therapy, which he readily admitted was formed on the principles set forth by stoic philosophers like Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius.
Ever wonder about the origins of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy? First of all, Albert Ellis was first on the scene -- not Aaron Beck, as is commonly believed. Secondly, Ellis plainly stated (as was his wont) that he lifted the ideas for his Rational-Emotive Behavioral Therapy from the Stoic philosophers like Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius.
https://clinicalpsychreading.blogspot.c ... idion.html
From the Enchiridion:
Men are disturbed, not by things, but by the principles and notions which they form concerning things.
From Beck, one of the other founding fathers of CBT:
the way that individuals perceive a situation is more closely connected to their reaction than the situation itself.
https://beckinstitute.org/get-informed/ ... e-therapy/
CBT, and various 12 step programs used to treat depression, anxiety, anger, substance abuse and such, are largely based on the philosophy put forth in The Enchiridion and Meditations. These principles are very effective in treating the issues mentioned by the OP. The key is to separate those things we can control, like our own attitudes, opinions, habits, and actions, from what we can not control, which is pretty much everything else.
From the Enchiridion:
The things in our control are by nature free, unrestrained, unhindered; but those not in our control are weak, slavish, restrained, belonging to others. Remember, then, that if you suppose that things which are slavish by nature are also free, and that what belongs to others is your own, then you will be hindered. You will lament, you will be disturbed, and you will find fault both with gods and men. But if you suppose that only to be your own which is your own, and what belongs to others such as it really is, then no one will ever compel you or restrain you. Further, you will find fault with no one or accuse no one. You will do nothing against your will. No one will hurt you, you will have no enemies, and you not be harmed.
In the case of the depressed man, we often reach such a state because we attach false hope to events outside our control, and take things personally which are really not our fault, not our problem, not worth the effort of stressing about. We develop bad habits of seeing the negative in events, which is easy enough to find if you are looking for it. We look for and find good and evil in the outside world, instead of inside ourselves, where it is really to be found, and where we can control the outcome and work to make things better.
In the case of anger issues, we lack proper perspective, and falsely assume it is 'all about us', when it seldom is:
When any person harms you, or speaks badly of you, remember that he acts or speaks from a supposition of its being his duty. Now, it is not possible that he should follow what appears right to you, but what appears so to himself. Therefore, if he judges from a wrong appearance, he is the person hurt, since he too is the person deceived. For if anyone should suppose a true proposition to be false, the proposition is not hurt, but he who is deceived about it. Setting out, then, from these principles, you will meekly bear a person who reviles you, for you will say upon every occasion, "It seemed so to him."
I could go on indefinitely praising the Enchiridion in particular and stoicism in general, but anyone who is interested would certainly benefit more from reading the original texts.
The condition and characteristic of a vulgar person, is, that he never expects either benefit or hurt from himself, but from externals. The condition and characteristic of a philosopher is, that he expects all hurt and benefit from himself. The marks of a proficient are, that he censures no one, praises no one, blames no one, accuses no one, says nothing concerning himself as being anybody, or knowing anything: when he is, in any instance, hindered or restrained, he accuses himself; and, if he is praised, he secretly laughs at the person who praises him; and, if he is censured, he makes no defense. But he goes about with the caution of sick or injured people, dreading to move anything that is set right, before it is perfectly fixed. He suppresses all desire in himself; he transfers his aversion to those things only which thwart the proper use of our own faculty of choice; the exertion of his active powers towards anything is very gentle; if he appears stupid or ignorant, he does not care, and, in a word, he watches himself as an enemy, and one in ambush.
I strongly recommend them to anyone, but in particular to those who suffer from the problems brought up to start this thread. If you don't have these problems, then I would suggest that you may have unwittingly adopted stoic principles gathered from other sources, like the serenity prayer:
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.