Rage rooms are meant to be a lighthearted way to smash things and release some stress. But every now and then, what comes out isn’t just anger, it’s something a lot darker, or at least deeply concerning.
That’s exactly what happened when someone on Reddit asked: “Rage room employees, what’s the craziest ‘oh my god, this person needs actual professional help’ thing you’ve seen in one of the rooms?” The answers didn’t just come from staff, but also from others who witnessed or heard about unsettling incidents. From emotional breakdowns to disturbing outbursts, these stories reveal that not everyone goes in just to break a few plates. Keep reading to see the most shocking ones.
#1
I AM the professional help and I have used a rage room once after dealing with a very traumatic, soul crushing case involving a child. I obviously couldn't hurt the offender in the situation, so I went to a rage room. It was very cathartic for me to get out all of the internal rage at the injustices I encounter on a regular basis in my line of work and it allowed me to stay out of jail or prison and keep helping people.
49points
#2
Had a guy who brought photos of his ex-wife and kids to tape on stuff before smashing it while screaming at them.
We banned him immediately. That's not therapy, that's practice.
We banned him immediately. That's not therapy, that's practice.
41points
#3
Woman came in and spent 3 hours methodically destroying everything while having a full conversation with her dead mother, asking for forgiveness and sobbing. We didn’t charge her but definitely suggested grief counseling instead.
39points
A rage room, also called a smash room or anger room, is a space designed for people to vent their frustrations by destroying objects. From plates and glasses to old furniture and electronics, visitors are encouraged to let loose and break things without consequences. The idea is simple: sometimes smashing something feels oddly satisfying, and these rooms give people a safe outlet to do just that.
#4
A mom brought her 9th grade son in to smash stuff. He was hesitant at first but then mom kept saying, “think of all the kids that have bullied you. Pretend they’re the vcr/bottle/printer/.” He got a good little smash in. Like to think mom used that as a way to prevent her son from being a school shooter.
36points
#5
I worked at one for about a year in college and the weirdest thing I ever saw was this guy who came in alone, super quiet, refused music or anything. We gave him the usual setup with bottles, bats, crowbars, all that.
He goes in… and just sits on a pile of bottles. Doesn’t touch a thing. Just stares at the wall for like 20 minutes straight. Then out of nowhere he stands up, organizes all the plates by size, sweeps the floor spotless like he’s on shift, bows to the security camera, and walks out without saying a single word.
We all watched the footage later and couldn’t decide if he needed therapy, an exorcist, or maybe a job on the cleaning crew.
He goes in… and just sits on a pile of bottles. Doesn’t touch a thing. Just stares at the wall for like 20 minutes straight. Then out of nowhere he stands up, organizes all the plates by size, sweeps the floor spotless like he’s on shift, bows to the security camera, and walks out without saying a single word.
We all watched the footage later and couldn’t decide if he needed therapy, an exorcist, or maybe a job on the cleaning crew.
34points
#6
Not an employee but I went with my best friend after numerous unprocessed events. We broke everything, naturally. At some point I blacked out, we ran out of paid materials, I just started taking a hammer to the table, until it was literally wedged in and the table was dismembered. Literally shards of wood everywhere. Hands were bleeding despite the gloves lol. Table was Made out of really really thick wood.
We finally walk out, smiling, relieved. The employee was white washed and shocked. Said our time session ended over a 1/2 an hour ago, but when he checked the cameras and saw the table action, he figured he’d let it play out and get fatigued rather quick. Until we didn’t.
He then said he’s been there for 2 years, never seen anyone turn on the table in the same regard. Recommended therapy. And gave me a punch card for future visits.
I’m 115, petite female. The table was as long as me. LOL.
We finally walk out, smiling, relieved. The employee was white washed and shocked. Said our time session ended over a 1/2 an hour ago, but when he checked the cameras and saw the table action, he figured he’d let it play out and get fatigued rather quick. Until we didn’t.
He then said he’s been there for 2 years, never seen anyone turn on the table in the same regard. Recommended therapy. And gave me a punch card for future visits.
I’m 115, petite female. The table was as long as me. LOL.
27points
Most people step into a rage room carrying the weight of pent-up stress. It could be frustrations from work, unresolved tension at home, or just the general stress of daily life. For many, it’s about finding a release in a way that feels dramatic but harmless. Done occasionally, smashing things can even feel therapeutic, a healthy way to channel emotions that might otherwise boil over in unhealthy ways.
#7
We went for a work activity and I asked the workers what the weirdest thing they ever saw was. A couple came in with 10-15 wedding photos of themselves, lined them up around the room interspaced with other stuff, and just bashed the hell out of all of them and then hugged each other at the end and were both crying when they left.
26points
#8
Wife and I had free tickets to one followed by dinner.
The dinner place cancelled on us last minute, and we spent most of our rage room time trying to book a new dinner place. We decided to give up and just have a Mcdonald's date afterwards; decided it was time to actually enjoy the room - only to realise:
1. We have about 5 minutes left and
2. The employees were watching us through the little door window with strange looks
We decided to use the rest of our time to f**k with them, so we just pretended to drink from some of the glasses in the room, despite there being no water in them.
When time was up we stood up, smashed our cups on the ground and left. We had a really, really good time at Mcdonald's eating and laughing at how insane we must've looked.
The dinner place cancelled on us last minute, and we spent most of our rage room time trying to book a new dinner place. We decided to give up and just have a Mcdonald's date afterwards; decided it was time to actually enjoy the room - only to realise:
1. We have about 5 minutes left and
2. The employees were watching us through the little door window with strange looks
We decided to use the rest of our time to f**k with them, so we just pretended to drink from some of the glasses in the room, despite there being no water in them.
When time was up we stood up, smashed our cups on the ground and left. We had a really, really good time at Mcdonald's eating and laughing at how insane we must've looked.
25points
#9
Not an employee, but watched a woman spend five full minutes hugging a printer before she finally smashed it,then whispered “Im sorry” to every single piece. Room went dead quiet.
25points
To learn more about what really goes on inside these places, we spoke with Advait Jadhav, a staff member at Rage Room in Mumbai. “People come in for all sorts of reasons,” he shared. “Some genuinely want to just break things and let their anger out. Others see it as pure fun, almost like an unusual adventure. And of course, we get people who are just curious to try something different.” According to him, breakups are a common trigger. “I’ve seen so many people come right after heartbreak. They’re emotional, they’re angry, and this becomes their outlet.”
#10
Someone going *way too hard* on a printer—like it was personally responsible for every bad day at the office.
24points
#11
Had a young lad entering the room a few months back. On first glance he looked like a really calm person, even the way he spoke gave me no impression that he had anger issues, if anything he was a modern gentleman, even dressed like one as well, which left me a bit surprised wondering “what is a person like him doing here?”, so I falsely assumed that he arrived just for the experience of it, you know, to have a few laughs breaking things, something he wouldn’t be able to do under any other circumstances. So I gave him all the equipment he wanted, and at the moment he entered the room, my eyes had locked on to him, my curiosity wouldn’t calm down at all, I wanted to see for myself how would he interact with the items. So anyways, there he was, standing still for almost 20 seconds, then taking a really deep breath, as if he was bracing for impact, then Lord Almighty, I had seen everything, he let out such a loud scream, followed by a baffling fit of rage, I got startled so fast that I almost fell from my own chair.
There he was, smashing everything into pieces as if there was no tomorrow, each swing of the bat more ferocious than the previous, adrenaline off the roof, and all the time, that child-like deafening scream he was letting out, I even started to think “how tough is his neck to scream like that for so long”, it was as if screaming was part of his life. And he was STILL going at it, then there was an old speaker about his size, before he hit it, he started huffing and puffing so violently I thought he was about to have a heart attack, and as he was hyperventilating, trust me when I say this, he was SALIVATING as well, you could see it leaking from his mouth, like a bulldog, then my curiosity simply turned into utter fear, he was smashing everything as if he was blinded (literally) by rage.
So about the speaker, he put so much force into it, so much anger, that most of its components went flying across the room like a frag bomb. After a few minutes, from the rage he bathed himself in, he suddenly stopped on the spot, like you plugged him off or something, took a deep breath again then switched back to that Soothing Gentle like personality.
He exited the room and saw my worried face, he simply said: “I apologise for anything that I may have done in that room, but I had to”, then i couldn’t help it and asked him for context regarding that…rage. He said “no worries, I’ll tell you”, turns out, he had found his older sister crying uncontrollably on the floor the day before and rushed to her, he asked her what’s wrong, and she told him that her boyfriend dumped her, not because their relationship was bad, but because during an argument her boyfriend caused by some major mistake he did, “he wanted to assert his dominance as a man to her”, something like a display of power, however she didn’t really saw that the same way and blocked him because, well, she had enough of him, a few hours later, he had broke in her apartment building and also attempted to break into her floor as well, luckily her mother was there as well and called the cops on him. That’s all i know, as for his rage, it has plenty of layers, from seeing his heartbroken sister, to hearing about a lunatic trying to hurt her. Man, that day was something else, at least i had a smile on my face when he said that they filed a restraining order against whoever that unstable dude was.
There he was, smashing everything into pieces as if there was no tomorrow, each swing of the bat more ferocious than the previous, adrenaline off the roof, and all the time, that child-like deafening scream he was letting out, I even started to think “how tough is his neck to scream like that for so long”, it was as if screaming was part of his life. And he was STILL going at it, then there was an old speaker about his size, before he hit it, he started huffing and puffing so violently I thought he was about to have a heart attack, and as he was hyperventilating, trust me when I say this, he was SALIVATING as well, you could see it leaking from his mouth, like a bulldog, then my curiosity simply turned into utter fear, he was smashing everything as if he was blinded (literally) by rage.
So about the speaker, he put so much force into it, so much anger, that most of its components went flying across the room like a frag bomb. After a few minutes, from the rage he bathed himself in, he suddenly stopped on the spot, like you plugged him off or something, took a deep breath again then switched back to that Soothing Gentle like personality.
He exited the room and saw my worried face, he simply said: “I apologise for anything that I may have done in that room, but I had to”, then i couldn’t help it and asked him for context regarding that…rage. He said “no worries, I’ll tell you”, turns out, he had found his older sister crying uncontrollably on the floor the day before and rushed to her, he asked her what’s wrong, and she told him that her boyfriend dumped her, not because their relationship was bad, but because during an argument her boyfriend caused by some major mistake he did, “he wanted to assert his dominance as a man to her”, something like a display of power, however she didn’t really saw that the same way and blocked him because, well, she had enough of him, a few hours later, he had broke in her apartment building and also attempted to break into her floor as well, luckily her mother was there as well and called the cops on him. That’s all i know, as for his rage, it has plenty of layers, from seeing his heartbroken sister, to hearing about a lunatic trying to hurt her. Man, that day was something else, at least i had a smile on my face when he said that they filed a restraining order against whoever that unstable dude was.
24points
#12
I made one for my sister and our family at home when she’d been diagnosed with terminal cancer. We did it on an open cement roof with a bunch of old pottery. It was the best.
23points
But Jadhav admits there’s a flip side too. “In everyday life, lashing out, breaking things, yelling, showing aggression, can create bigger problems. So when people choose to come here, it’s because they feel it helps them avoid those behaviors in real life,” he explained.
#13
At the rage room I went to, I asked the guy about his strangest experiences. He said that he's always unnerved by anyone who smashes the stuff up in complete silence, but the worst were the disturbingly large number of people who requested 'child-size mannequins' to destroy.
21points
#14
I put in my dad’s construction boots and stomped the s**t out of the dumb wedding cake topper my ex husband picked
Felt invigorating.
Felt invigorating.
20points
#15
One woman brought in a framed wedding photo and went absolutely feral on it with a bat. We just stood there like… yeah, this is above our pay grade.
19points
One big motivator, Jadhav noted, is the cleanup, or rather, the lack of it. “At home, if you break a plate, you’re stuck with the mess and the guilt. Here, they don’t have to worry about that. They can smash, scream, and leave feeling lighter.” Many customers have later told him they experienced a genuine release of negative energy, almost like a weight lifting off their shoulders.
#16
Not me but someone I know. Apparently some guy walked in and told them they might want to cover their ears. They told him it's fine, they're used to it. He just kind of shrugged and went in and spent like one minute looking like he was pumping himself up then let out this horrible roar that must have lasted about 10 seconds. They didn't know a human could produce a sound like that, everyone jumped. They say they felt it inside them, like their whole body was vibrating. He apparently clove a table in two with the baseball bat in one hit then threw the bat away so hard it embedded itself into a wall and he just started throwing the pieces of the things he broke around as hard as he could. Apparently, when the time was up, he was not okay at all. He was spasming and barely coherent. After he'd managed to calm down a bit he got his stuff, gave them a curt thanks and goodbye and left.
19points
#17
Took my son and his gf of 12 months to a rage room. She spent her time writing all her ex's names on plates and smashing them.
19points
#18
Not an employee but participant in the rage room: did this for my birthday one year with 3 coworkers. We are all in the military. We turned the computer monitor into dust, all the glass bottles into powder and ended up breaking a bat, a golf club, and a crow bar. Worth every penny.
18points
Interestingly, rage rooms aren’t just for individuals. They’ve become surprisingly popular as group activities too. “We’ve hosted birthday parties, bachelor groups, even companies bringing their teams in,” Jadhav shared with a laugh. “Once, an entire office came after a stressful week. Everyone was joking, laughing, and yes, one woman even said she was pretending the plates were her boss!” For many, it’s not just stress relief, it’s also a quirky bonding experience.
#19
When I was younger, my therapist had a rage room in his office that we could use if we felt like we needed it. One time, during group therapy, one of the guys asked to use it. Apparently, he went in there and just cried. Not little, bitty weeping but full on gnashing of teeth s**t.
Afterwards, he came out and said, "okay, I think I can talk about it now.".
Afterwards, he came out and said, "okay, I think I can talk about it now.".
18points
#20
Regular customer started carving his coworker’s name into the walls with broken glass while muttering about “making them pay.”.
17points