Stages of Grief

The 5 Stages of Grief

The stages of grief were developed by Kübler-Ross.  According to her, an individual who is grieving is expected to move through a series of clear stages: denial, anger, bargaining, and depression, to eventually arrive at “acceptance” at which is a time that their “grief work” should be complete.  However, later, Kübler-Ross stated that she did not intend for these stages to be linear and universal.  These stages are what individuals MIGHT experience in the chaos that comes along with loss, death, and grief.  Again, I say that grief is as individual as love. Every life and every path is different and unique.  A “happy ending” looks different to every individual. 

Being Brave

Although each individual is different and unique, each individual will be brave.  Brave as in waking up each day to face what the day has in store when you would rather remain in bed and stop waking up.  Being brave as in staying present to your own heart. Being brave is letting your pain unravel and take up all the space that it needs in that moment.  Being brave is telling THAT story.

Reference

Devine, Megan. (2017). It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn’t Understand. Sounds True, Inc.