the Grief cycle

Unfortunately, grief is something that we will all experience. While grief is commonly associated with death, it does not always need to be felt to such an extreme degree.

By definition (according to Google), grief is the loss of something deemed important. That means a relationship, a job, a friendship, a home, a life you once lived—anything that was once important to you and is no longer present—can be grieved.

Below is a representation of the grief cycle with a slight twist:

As you can see, there are many different stages within the cycle, and while it would be lovely to move from one step to the next in chronological order, it is not always that simple. You can bounce from ‘anger’ to ‘depression’ and back to ‘bargaining’ all in a short or long space of time.

Now, for my slight twist: as you can see, acceptance has been placed somewhat randomly. I believe ‘acceptance’ can happen at any time. While the stages of grief can be messy, gruesome, and downright horrible, the final stage of acceptance is freeing, liberating, and brings a real sense of peace.

Like anything, there are many outside influences that can distract you from properly going through this process. However, allowing yourself to feel—and I mean really feel—every emotion can ensure that you reach acceptance properly. This is not to say you won’t ever miss what you have lost, but healing properly can ensure that the emotional wound becomes a scab rather than a cut that bleeds at a simple touch.

Give yourself space and time to go through the grief cycle. There is no time limit, and more importantly, don’t let anyone rush your process. Only you know how you feel about the loss you have experienced.

It is better to go through it now rather than avoid it and face it later on.

I know it is cliché, but time is the best healer, and if you allow yourself to grieve properly, one time is probably enough.