How much time you spend navigating the stages of grief also varies from person to person. It might take you hours, months, or longer to process a loss and heal from it.
You might not experience all these stages of grief or in the order listed above. You could go back and forth from one stage to another.
You may even skip all these emotions and process your loss differently altogether. The five stages of grief are supposed to serve you as a reference, not as a rule.
Denial
For some people, this may be the first response to loss.
Anger
Sometimes pain takes other forms. According to Kübler-Ross, pain from a loss is often redirected and expressed as anger.
Bargaining
Bargaining is a stage of grief that helps you hold on to hope in a situation of intense pain.
You might think to yourself that you’re willing to do anything and sacrifice everything if your life is restored to how it was before the loss.
Depression
Just as in all the other stages of grief, depression is experienced in different ways. There’s no right or wrong way to go about it, nor is there a deadline to overcome it.
In this instance, depression isn’t a sign of a mental health condition. Instead, it’s a natural and appropriate response to grief.
Acceptance
Reaching acceptance isn’t necessarily about being OK with what happened. Depending on your experience, it might be understandable if you don’t ever feel this way.
You might not experience all these stages of grief or in the order listed above. You could go back and forth from one stage to another.
You may even skip all these emotions and process your loss differently altogether. The five stages of grief are supposed to serve you as a reference, not as a rule.
Denial
For some people, this may be the first response to loss.
Anger
Sometimes pain takes other forms. According to Kübler-Ross, pain from a loss is often redirected and expressed as anger.
Bargaining
Bargaining is a stage of grief that helps you hold on to hope in a situation of intense pain.
You might think to yourself that you’re willing to do anything and sacrifice everything if your life is restored to how it was before the loss.
Depression
Just as in all the other stages of grief, depression is experienced in different ways. There’s no right or wrong way to go about it, nor is there a deadline to overcome it.
In this instance, depression isn’t a sign of a mental health condition. Instead, it’s a natural and appropriate response to grief.
Acceptance
Reaching acceptance isn’t necessarily about being OK with what happened. Depending on your experience, it might be understandable if you don’t ever feel this way.