The stages of grief may seem more intense during the early days and months after a loss, yet the grieving process continues for much longer than just a few months. Depending upon your experience of grief, you may be in varying stages of grief after the first year, and may, on occasion, find that grief rears its ugly head even well after you expect it. Everyone experiences grief differently and the stages of grief may last for shorter or longer periods for each person.
Depression
Denial, anger and bargaining are all a part of the grieving process, but typically these phases resolve over the first year. Depression is the next stage in the grieving process and one that may hit particularly strongly after the survival needs of the first year are managed. Unfortunately, typical methods of managing depression, including medication, are not effective when dealing with grief, reports PsychCentral.com. Feelings of profound sadness are quite common in the second year after a loss, especially surrounding reminders of grief and loss or significant dates.
Testing
While Elisabeth Kubler-Ross did not identify testing as one of the five stages of grief in her 1969 book "On Death and Dying," it is included in J. William Worden's, author of "Tasks of Mourning" from 1991, as a task of mourning and part of the expanded seven stages of grief. The testing phase requires that you adjust to an environment without your loved one. These adjustments can be both physical and emotional, but cannot occur until after you have experienced the profound sadness of loss. You may need to find new ways of doing things, make lifestyle changes, or engage in self growth and exploration.
Acceptance
Acceptance is the final stage in the grieving process. This stage can be the slowest to come, requiring that you not only accept the loss, but move on from it both physically and emotionally. J. William Worden suggests that this is an emotional relocation of the loved one. Continued remembrances and rituals may be helpful; however, life has finally found a new normal in this stage and you have done the work of grieving and are ready to move on with your own life.
Getting Stuck or Cycling
It is equally important to note that some people find that their grief does not resolve, and may need to seek professional help to work through their emotions. You may find yourself stuck in denial or anger. If you continue behaving as if your loved one will come home or find yourself deeply angry, you may be stuck in one of these stages of grief. If you find yourself repeatedly experiencing these emotions, you may not have resolved this stage of grief, suggests ChangingMinds.org.
