1. Denial/ isolation
2. Anger
3. Bargaining
4. Depression
5. Acceptance
People do not always experience all of the 5 stages. Some stages may be re-entered, others not experienced at all. Every person is different, so we all devote different lengths of time working through the steps and express each stage with different levels of intensity. The 5 stages don’t occur in a specific order, some before others as it varies from person to person. People’s grief and other reactions to emotional trauma are as individual as a fingerprint. Each person moves between stages before achieving a more peaceful acceptance of death. The transition between stages can be more of a flow, rather than a progression.
The model recognises that people have to pass through their own journey of coming to terms with death. After which there is generally an acceptance of reality, which then allows the person to cope. Again, not everyone will experience all of these stages, or, if all are experienced, they won't necessarily occur in this particular order. The grief process is highly personal and should not be rushed, nor lengthened, on the basis of an individual's imposed time frame or opinion.
1. Denial/ isolation
Kubler-Ross' first stage is Denial. In this stage, people who are grieving are unable or unwilling to accept that the loss has taken place. Denial is a conscious or unconscious refusal to accept facts, information and reality, relating to the situation at hand. Some people can be become locked in this stage when dealing with upsetting change that can be disregarded. The first reaction to learning of terminal illness or death of a loved one is to rebuff the reality of the situation. Denial is also a defence mechanism that buffers immediate shock, where we block out the words and hide from the facts. This is a short-term response that carries us through