Gradual.
We do have epiphanies, and they can certainly change a core belief, but it's not very likely. What I think happens instead is that an epiphany is often the straw that breaks the camel's back; over time, you accumulate more and more uncertainty about that core belief, even if it's subconscious, and an epiphany is the moment you realize it.
That said, I don't think there are any steps to it. Thinking about it, dwelling on it, questioning it... these can help. They can increase the rainfall, so to speak. But the change happens when you let it happen. The river builds up along the dam, but the epiphany is the opening of the floodgates.
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