The Five Stages of Grief According to a Celsian

The future of our funds is in limbo.

The company that told us “Banks are Not Your Friends” & “Unbank Yourself” violated our trust in a most egregious manner.

We are sad. Angry. Brokenhearted.

Here are the 5 Stages of Grief (DABDA) according to a Celsian.

I am not a licensed psychologist, nor do I seek to provide any clinical advice.

I wrote V1 of this article a week or so after getting REKT on LUNA. Now I’ve been REKT again by Celsius. Hence V2.

Writing my thoughts has helped me reflect & think clearly. I hope it helps you too.

“Should you shield the valleys from the windstorms, you would never see the beauty of their canyons.” ―Dr. Elizabeth Kübler-Ross

The Five Stages of Grief, DABDA, were first introduced by Swiss Psychiatrist Elizabeth Kübler-Ross in her 1969 book “On Death & Dying.”

The 5 Stages:

1) Denial

2) Anger

3) Bargaining

4) Depression

5) Acceptance

In the simplest terms: The book describes the emotional state of grieving individuals & how they make sense of their new reality.

While DABDA was initially meant to describe the grief process for terminally-ill patients & their loved ones, the grief stages have since been expanded to include other personal losses or significant life-changes.

For example:

>Major rejection

>Breakups

>Loss of job/income

“The most beautiful ppl…are those who have known…loss & found their way out of the depths. These ppl have an appreciation & understanding of life that fills them w/ compassion, gentleness & a deep loving concern. Beautiful ppl do not just happen.” ― Elizabeth Kübler-Ross

Stage 1

DENIAL: The first step. Shock. There must be a mistake. Cling to false hope. Keep trying! Isolate away from anyone that might understand what’s actually going on.

MY DENIAL
I’d just landed from Consensus (the DeFi convention in Austin, Texas) and turned on my phone to see the notifications — Celsius halts all withdrawals.
I’d been in such deep depression from being REKT on LUNA I hadn’t begun to consider the aftershocks.
It’s Fine. I’m Fine. We’re going to be FINE.

Stage 2

ANGER: Once the realization of what’s actually happening occurs. Being in denial is no longer possible. Mad at the world. Who to blame? You might want to scream or throw something.

MY ANGER
I’m an avid DeFi user.
I understand “Not Your Keys, Not Your Crypto.”
I should have seen the signs.
I was mad — at everyone, but mostly at myself.

Stage 3

BARGAINING: At this stage, you might feel a sense of hope that your suffering can be avoided “if.” You might pray to a higher power. You’ll do anything to stop the grief.

MY BARGAINING
Enter #CELShortSqueeze
I couldn’t sit on my hands & get rekt AGAIN. Not after LUNA. I would do anything to help avoid that crippling pain for me & the Celsius community.
I wanted to make a difference.

Stage 4

DEPRESSION: Reliving the past over & over again. Melancholy. Despair. Isolation from loved ones. You refuse to socialize. Why should I bother?

MY DEPRESSION
I was still depressed over LUNA when my funds were locked on Celsius.
Rugged on two projects in a row? Talk about a pretty devastating blow to my ego AND my portfolio.
The thought of crypto made me sick. I wanted to leave the space & never come back.

Stage 5

ACCEPTANCE: The progress of moving on begins at this stage. You accept the reality of the loss. Emotions begin to stabilize. You pick up the pieces. You might feel a sense of calm.

MY ACCEPTANCE
The day after Celsius blocked withdrawals, I forced myself to consider my bitcoin gone forever.
I cannot control this outcome. Though I am an optimist, I know it will be years before seeing any funds.
I will focus my time and energy finding ways to move forward.

I know you are hurting. I am too. I wish I could rewind the clock and pretend like none of this ever happened.

But don’t beat yourself up. This is not your fault. You did the best you could with the knowledge you had at the time.

Where do we go from here? For me that looks like:

>Staying apprised of Celsius and Chapter 11 news.

>What lessons am I meant to learn?

>Is there a silver lining? (this might take a while to figure out)

>How can I increase my income to rebuild?

>Red flags to look for next time?

Let’s also take a moment to appreciate the resilience of our community.

Whether it be marathon 12 hour Twitter Spaces/therapy sessions hosted by Otis or seeing FTX with only 380 $CEL because of the#CELShortSqueeze, I’m continually amazed by Celsians.

I’m no expert on bankruptcy laws but Chapter 11 is NOT Chapter 7.

This isn’t over. I truly believe that this experience will introduce new opportunities into our lives if only we reach out & take them.

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“There are no mistakes, no coincidences. All events are blessings given to us to learn from.” ― Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, M.D.

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Depression hotline numbers you can call:

>National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800–273–8255 (TALK)

>SAMHSA: 800–662–4357 (HELP)

>Samaritans: 877–870–4673 (HOPE) (call or text)

>Crisis Text Line: Text “HOME” to 741741

>Friendship Line: 800–971–0016

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“You will not ‘get over’ the loss…you will learn to live with it. You will heal & you will rebuild yourself around the loss you have suffered. You will be whole again but you will never be the same. Nor should you be the same nor would you want to.” ― Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

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Original Medium Article