I can't tell you how many articles Jordan and I have read, or stories we've heard from family and friends when we were planning our wedding 6 years ago. While it was all helpful, it surely turned up the pressure and caused areas of stress for the both of us, because we were so focused on perfection.
If you hired a Wedding Planner, chances are you are not having to worry too much about extreme wedding planning stress. However, if you're the faithful DIY kind of person, read below on some simple and helpful tips to take the stress out of wedding planning.
5 Simple Steps to Take The Stress Out of Planning A wedding
Let's Talk...Clear Communication
Whew! After the ring is placed on that finger, social media posts, and celebrations of the engagement are over...one of the first things you should consider to help with wedding planning stress is to have...clear communication....with your fiance! This is the time where you're able discuss budget, contributions, delegating tasks, and seeing what the two of you may like or dislike.
As much as you're excited to, don't consult with your friends and family about finance, wedding colors, and themes before chatting with your fiance. It's important that expectations and support for your fiance's vision is considered, understood, and established.
Trust me...you will have the pressure and stress of unsolicited advice from family and friends putting in their two cents, and shared wedding disaster story. Kindly, take it all in, filter out the unnecessary, and move on with your fiance secured in your decisions!
Learn to say "No"...PERIOD
Planning a wedding is exciting and fun but it can also be one of the busiest times of your life. If you haven't already, you'll hear statements like; "Am I invited?!" or "She's known you since you were in diapers! You have to invite her!" OH and not to mention the dreaded..."I'll pay for their plate, just put them down".
If you don’t want to end up being a nervous wreck a week before your big day, learn to prioritize and say no to any new commitments that would take away from other important wedding-related tasks. It’s really ok to say no every now and then...and stick to it.
Become the queen...or king..of organization
The more organized you are, the better your wedding planning experience will be. My friends laughed at me when I did this, but it was truly a huge help in the process of managing and planning the wedding.
I hosted a Bridal Party Meet & Greet where I put together a PowerPoint presentation that included all important information from phone numbers, codes for attires, deadlines, rules, and roles for each person on the big day and more...(it's the teacher in me). This not only held everyone accountable, but helped Jordan and I from stressing on the small details.
Keep a digital copy of all of your important documents, contracts and information in one file on your computer so that you can easily refer back to them when you need to. If you want to be able to bring important documents along to meetings with vendors, you can always create a wedding binder that contains all of the information you need. Plus it makes for a great backup copy too.
Helping Hands
Let's face it...it takes two to get married and a community to make a wedding. You can be the queen of DIY and still need some help. This is where you rally up your bridal troops, friends and family to assist in completing tasks!
Although it's your big day, remember you have a support system who are more than ready and willing to help. Be sure they are people you trust, you are more likely to be honest with your feelings if things aren't precisely how you would envision.
Have a little fun, move, and BREATH
There’s no need for you to be a frazzled bride. Take out your calendar and schedule a few fun days in-between all of your planning. Make fun and laughter a priority in the weeks leading up to your wedding.
Sometimes it’s important to come back down to earth and remember why you’re choosing to marry your partner and that trying to control every single aspect of your day is only going to leave you wishing it was over. Go out and enjoy an afternoon with the girls or guys where you don’t talk about the wedding at all.
Exercise does wonders when you’ve got a lot on your plate and just need to take a breather and focus on your health. This doesn’t mean that you need to schedule in an hour at the gym every day either. If you’re strapped for time, a simple 15-20 minute walk or yoga session will make all the difference to your stress and energy levels.
Lastly, take a complete timeout from wedding planning as often as you need to. Every couple deserves a relaxing soak in the tub or a heavenly hot stone massage to relieve some of the tension they might be feeling. It can be difficult to make time to simply relax but do your best to find the time, even if it’s just 30 minutes a week.
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