The Five Stages of Dying Course

Free Course by Everything IFS Academy | Death and Dying Series

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Welcome to The Five Stages of Dying Course for Everyday People

In the 1960s, a Swiss-born psychiatrist named Elisabeth Kübler-Ross did something almost no one in medicine was willing to do: she sat down with dying patients and asked them to be the teachers. Out of those conversations came her 1969 book On Death and Dying and the framework the whole world now knows, a body of work that helped launch the hospice movement and taught modern medicine to speak honestly with the dying. Her full story has its own lesson inside. The lens she left behind is the one this course is built on: what happens inside a person as death approaches follows recognizable patterns, and there is real relief in learning that what you are living through has a name, and that you are not the first to walk this road.

This course is written in plain, emotionally human language anyone can follow, whether you work around death and dying every day or have never said the word out loud. It is not clinical or professional training. It is real knowledge and guidance you can use in your own life and with the people you love, whether you are facing your own death, walking beside someone who is, or simply ready to understand this part of life before it arrives. Each module offers clear teaching, real-life examples, and the honest, practical substance the topic deserves, and every lesson ends with a gentle IFS and parts work exercise so you can begin working with what you learn right away.

This course is self-paced, with no tests, exams, or homework. Feel free to go through it in order, or jump around to whatever interests you most.

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Course outline

Click any lesson below to begin.

Orientation

Module 1 — What Are the Five Stages of Dying?

Module 2 — Who Was Elisabeth Kübler-Ross?

Core Teachings

Module 3 — Denial

Module 4 — Anger

Module 5 — Bargaining

Module 6 — Depression

Module 7 — Acceptance

Bonus

Bonus Module — Anxiety, the Missing Stage

Closing

Module 8 — Living With the Stages

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Disclaimer: Everything IFS Academy is an independent educational platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the IFS Institute. While we strive for accuracy, errors can occur, and users are encouraged to cross-reference critical information. These courses, lessons, skills, and practices are offered for educational and self-reflection purposes only. They do not constitute therapy, mental health treatment, clinical training, or crisis support, and they should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care.

Crisis Support: 🚨 If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, feel unsafe, feel at risk of harming yourself or someone else, or feel too overwhelmed to safely use self-directed practices, please pause this material and reach out for immediate support. Contact a licensed mental health professional, call or text 988 in the U.S. or Canada, or use your local emergency or crisis resources.