First written down by Elisabeth
Kübler-Ross in her 1969 book "On Death and Dying" these five stages
were solely focused on the processing of grief after a death.
Speaking as someone who has gone
through losing a loved one, I have passed through every single one of these
stages. I know what they all feel like.
Over the course of years though I've
come to realize that it's not just after the death of a loved one that we
humans process loss. I've also seen (and personally experienced) these feelings
in other types of loss. For example a loss can also occur with a personal
terminal illness, the end of a slowly disintegrating friendship, an ended
relationship, estrangement in relationships, getting fired, loss of money, the death of a pet or animal, and some
might even argue waking up on a work day!