Grief Is for People

Crosley structures the memoir’s sections according to Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s five stages of grief. This theory describes the various mental and emotional states that a person may undergo when faced with the death of a loved one. The stages—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance—have become a valuable tool for grieving people and bereavement counselors and organizations.

Born in Switzerland in 1926, Kübler-Ross was a psychiatrist known for groundbreaking work on dying and grieving, publishing the book On Death and Dying in 1969, which introduced the model. Kübler-Ross’s contributions to the field are extensive: She cofounded the International Work Group on Death, Dying, and Bereavement and worked throughout the 1970s and 1980s to establish hospice facilities and practices to aid both the dying and their families (“Elisabeth Kübler-Ross Biography.” Elisabeth Kübler-Ross Foundation).

Kübler-Ross stressed that the stages are not always clear, delineated categories, but rather descriptions of states to help describe and understand the feelings that a person experiences as they cope with death. The stages are not experienced in the same way by everyone and can overlap. Likewise, the stages are not necessarily experienced in a linear order, and there is no set or “normal” length of time for each stage.