I stayed in my "angry place" for months (even years) on end. What I discovered was that when I let my guard down, all the sadness came flooding in and I felt like I could cry at the least little thing. Being the stoic person I am, I would never want to be seen as weak, which I equated sadness with. I did let my guard down one day and cried at work. One of my good friends who I worked with was shocked.....she said in the 16 years we have known each other she has NEVER seen me cry. I'm sure I learned all of this at a very young age, and I'm also sure it is tied to the choices I've made in relationships. I'm digging through it with the help of a therapist, and it is pretty fascinating.......if you are ready to learn a lot about yourself and begin to heal the hurt I would recommend finding a counselor that has experience with addictions/codependence.