THE FIVE STAGES OF GRIEF
Understanding the Kübler-Ross Model
The Five Stages of Grief is one of the best-known ways of talking about grief, but it is also one of the most misunderstood.
In this full guide, we look at Elisabeth Kübler-Ross's five familiar responses - denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance - while also exploring what the model was originally created to describe and why grief should never be treated as a five-step journey.
Kübler-Ross's work grew from listening to people who were seriously ill and approaching death. The stages were not intended to become a timetable for bereavement. They can overlap, return, appear in a different order or not describe someone's experience at all.
Inside this resource:
• Where the Kübler-Ross model came from
• Denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance explained
• Why grief is not linear
• What the five stages can and cannot tell us
• Real-life examples and an anonymous perspective
• Gentle reflection exercises
• A difficult-wave support plan
• Books and further reading
• Sources and clinical context
• A personal message from Maggie
This resource is designed to help you use the model as a language for understanding rather than a rulebook for how you should grieve.
There is no correct order, no deadline and no requirement to experience every stage.
Space to Breathe Therapy
Grief Library
