The Sixth Stage of Grief – And the Courage to Find Meaning

Denial. Anger. Bargaining. Depression. Acceptance.

For decades, these five stages – first introduced by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross – have shaped how we understand grief. They’ve helped many of us put words to feelings that once felt impossible to name.

But is there a sixth stage?

Grief expert David Kessler believes there is. And it may be the most transformative of all.

Meaning.

Kessler argues that meaning transforms grief from suffering into a more hopeful experience, allowing you to honour your loved one and move forward. Not “move on.” Not forget. But move forward – carrying love with you in a new way.

This week we’ve added David’s work to our Healthy Mind resource. He is hosting a free one-hour live event on Understanding Traumatic Grief on 26 February. If you or someone you love is navigating loss, this could be deeply supportive.

In the meantime, this interview with David is one that truly hits home:

Grief doesn’t disappear. But it can evolve.

And meaning is often found not in grand gestures – but in small, grounding rituals.

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The Healing Power of a Bowl of Soup

There’s something universally comforting about a warm bowl of soup when sadness lingers. Nourishment becomes more than fuel – it becomes care.

We’ve been loving a delicious vegan butternut squash soup from Dame Mary Berry.

Simple. Warming. Restorative.

And if you’re in the UK, here’s something to consider when buying your squash…

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Ten Reasons to Choose Organic Butternut Squash (Especially in the UK)

A shocking article in The Times this week highlighted pesticides still used in UK agriculture that are banned in the EU.

Among them:

• Benthiavalicarb — proposed carcinogen; endocrine disruptor
• Clofentezine — endocrine disruptor
• Dimethomorph — toxic for reproduction; endocrine disruptor
• Dimoxystrobin — groundwater contamination concerns
• Flufenacet — endocrine disruptor; groundwater contamination
• Ipconazole — reproductive toxicity; risk to birds
• Mepanipyrim — endocrine disruptor; risk to wild mammals
• Metribuzin — endocrine disruptor; bee risk
• S-metolachlor — groundwater contamination; ecological risk
• Triflusulfuron methyl — endocrine disruptor; groundwater contamination

Another article in The Guardian newspaper reported that substances still in use include chemicals linked to cancer, neuro-developmental problems, and even the feminisation of males.

Scary stuff — especially for children, whose developing brains are more vulnerable.

None of this is about perfection. It’s about reducing exposure where we can.

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Plant-Based Champions

If anyone still questions whether plants can power performance, consider these elite athletes:

• Novak Djokovic
• Kyrie Irving
• Alex Morgan
• Lewis Hamilton
• Kendrick Farris

All champions.
All plant-based.

Must be something in it? 1000’s of healthy plant-based recipes here. Oh, and if you can, make those plants organic too.

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You have to subscribe for the full article, but this headline is enough to raise more than one red flag for us. More scary stuff in last week’s Daily Mail newspaper.

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Brain Health: A Wake-Up Call

You can find Healthy Mind, Happy Life by Rangan Chatterjee on our Healthy Mind book resource. His message feels especially timely: focus on what you can control.

Because the headlines feel relentless.

A recent EU report described a “global brain health emergency.” Brain size shrinking. IQ falling. Mental health problems rising. One in six children now neurodivergent. One in four adults on antidepressants, sleeping pills, or tranquillisers. One in four over 80 experiencing pre-dementia.

Nutrition expert Patrick Holford explores these themes in his latest book and in a powerful podcast conversation we’ve been listening to. Difficult questions – but important ones.

We’ve added the book to our Dementia book resource.

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Is this even possible? Have a listen to these respected medical professionals – and then decide.

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We’ve also been reviewing emerging research on Multiple Sclerosis and adding it to our AutoImmune research resource. As always, transparency around conflicts of interest matters (and there is a lot of that listed on the PubMed research version.)

The world may feel chaotic. But we still have agency over what we eat, how we move, how we think, and how we respond.

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Pre-flight prep this week: organic orange and grapefruit juice. Three flights. Vitamins boosted. Ready.

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And done. Denise has landed in a beautiful place for final preparations for next week’s Appleseed Project‘s Integrative Cancer Care Conference – now completely sold out.

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Full Circle Moments

One of our keynote speakers is Chris Wark. For Denise, this is deeply personal. She used his Square One program as part of her healing journey from stage 3 breast cancer in 2017. Next week she’ll introduce him onstage.

His 10-part program is currently free to watch:

Sometimes healing is clinical.
Sometimes it’s nutritional.
Sometimes it’s emotional.
Often – it’s all of it.

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Dig Deep. Rise Above.

The grounded wisdom of Mel Robbins – saying it like it is, as always.

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When the noise feels overwhelming, perhaps the work is this:

• Choose nourishing food.
• Protect your brain.
• Question what you consume – in every sense.
• Support your mental health.
• Find meaning in your grief.

And then, sometimes, look up.

Because after a week of heavy headlines and intense preparation, we were greeted by a stunning double rainbow.

And for a moment, everything felt just that little bit better.

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In a world that feels like it’s spinning fast, perhaps the real sixth stage isn’t just meaning.

Perhaps it’s hope.

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