Whether you’ve only recently got engaged and are already excitedly planning what’s going to happen on what is set to be one of the greatest days of your life, or else you’ve been engaged for so long that you never thought the wedding date would be decided, either way, wedding planning is stressful.
So, in an effort to help you collect your thoughts and productively check off everything on your wedding to-do list, continue reading to learn about five proven-to-be-effective ways of reducing stress and anxiety ahead of your wedding day.
- Arrange Regular Date Nights
First and foremost, even though you and your fiancé are both working toward the same goal of creating the most idyllic and perfect wedding day and one that both of you will remember for the rest of your lives, it can sometimes create strain and even arguments within the relationship.
This is why the first piece of advice is one that you should certainly take to heart and this is to still arrange regular dates with one simple, yet unwavering rule; that neither of you even remotely attempt to discuss anything to do with your upcoming wedding.
If nothing else, having regular date nights will remind you of the plethora of reasons why you’ve chosen to marry them in the first place!
- Prioritize Your Tasks
On paper, it’s much easier to clearly prioritize each of your wedding tasks, such as choosing the dream wedding dress at the very top of the list and designing the table decor more toward the bottom.
However, when it comes to enacting your wedding plan, things can very quickly get complicated and muddled, so try to keep you and your partner calm and focused by remembering that there are only a few essential things that you need to have done and moreover, the sooner, the better!
Your wedding date needs to be set and the invitations need to be printed (or handmade), written, and sent as soon as possible, as obviously the sooner you let your friends and family members know the date, the more likely it is that they’ll be free and can attend. Naturally, your wedding venue is also a crucial element, and again, the sooner you’ve secured and paid for the nuptials and the reception, the more likely it is that you’ll remain relaxed.
- Hire Professional Caterers
Another crucial way to heavily reduce worries and tension on the day of the wedding itself, instead of rallying your friends and family to create the world’s most beautiful and luxurious buffet for the wedding reception, or even vowing to make everything yourself, is to instead hire professional caterers.
There are numerous benefits to hiring established and experienced gourmet catering services for your wedding day, including the following, to name just a few:
- Complete flexibility when it comes to the menu and timings.
- A professional supply of preparation and serving equipment.
- A cost-effective way of including all the food that you would like to have.
- A huge saving on time
- Schedule Self-Care Time
One of the biggest ironies of getting married, especially for those brides and grooms for whom being the center of attention isn’t part of their regular daily lives, is that even though their wedding day is supposed to be all about them, so much of the preparation is centered around the bridal party and the rest of the guests.
A recent study conducted by Brides magazine found that a whopping eighty-eight percent of brides will experience physical signs and symptoms of stress and anxiety as their big day approaches. So, in an effort to avoid tension headaches, acne and other types of skin breakouts, and even insomnia and other sleep-related issues, make sure that you also schedule plenty of self-care time.
Simple and speedy ways of checking in with your emotional health and well-being include the following:
- Take a walk around the block on your own.
- Journaling your feelings and emotions.
- Running yourself a hot and sweetly scented bubble bath.
- Eating plenty of nutrient-rich foods.
- Practice Basic Meditation & Mindfulness
The fifth and final suggestion on the list for beating pre-wedding stress is to learn and just as importantly, teach others, the simplest and still effective meditative and mindfulness techniques.
Mindfulness is basically the art of knowing who you are, your goals, your aspirations, and just as importantly, your hard and fast deal-breakers, so being confident and calm in what you want to achieve for your wedding day is only going to help you.
In addition, you could even learn some basic meditation techniques, too, which you can use when you’re beginning to feel overwhelmed, such as deep breathing or even simply counting down from ten to one before you speak.