Wedding nerves are to be expected, and you wouldn’t be alone if you’re feeling stressed while planning your wedding. In fact, a survey featured in Wed Magazine found that 71% of brides-to-be suffered from nerves during the build-up to their wedding. Among them, many even found that these nerves trickled over to the day itself.
Although it’s natural to feel many emotions, there’s no reason you need to experience more anxiety than you have to on your big day. Since you’re already planning for various factors, it’s best to centre it all on your own mental wellness. One of the biggest wedding planning mistakes you can make is forgetting to have fun, along with expectations of perfection and watching a little too much ‘Say Yes to the Dress.’
If you’re still feeling the pressure, check out some of the biggest reasons you’ll want to put mental well-being at the forefront.
It Will Lessen Your Stress on the Day Itself
Joyful is the bride who knows that the journey isn’t done until you’re wrapping up the catering. If you make sure you prioritise your comfort when planning out your wedding, you can have a better chance of having a less stressful time on the actual day of your union. Although you may not be able to avoid unexpected events and guests being guests, you’ll at least mitigate it with a more welcoming starting point.
A feature by 77 Diamonds on mental well-being before and during a wedding notes that the most common stressors are money, guest lists, getting suppliers, and the planning process itself. You can make this process easier on yourself by mapping everything out at the start and making preparations for both compromise and adjustments.
It Helps Avoid the Wedding Blues
When looking back at How I Feel After My Wedding, the wedding blues come up after all the dust has settled. Even though it’s all a magical ride, it can feel like it just zips by you (especially after all the anxiety and organisation of planning a wedding.) If you’re too busy getting caught up in the bits and pieces of it all, you’re really just left with, well, bits and pieces.
The same rules that guide wellbeing will help you avoid getting stuck in the blues for too long. Make sure you take the time to really enjoy what this momentous occasion means. Slow things down and maximise the memory! A good trick is mindfulness, so you can be keenly aware of how you feel and appreciate everything around you.
You’ll Want to Bask in the Best Moments
The notion that stress affects your memory isn’t just a fear-mongering trick to sell oils. Countless studies have shown that constant stress does, in fact, hamper your memory. There’s even a UK biobank study that says cumulative and prolonged stress impacts cognition and the actual structure of your brain.
That kind of dark stuff is the last thing clouding your wedding, and you should totally embrace the wonderful memories you can make. From the big kiss to the first dance and those hilarious moments with the bridal party, you’ll want to be able to bask in those even without a video to remind you. My Top Five Wedding Memories still stand out long after the wedding, and it often gets rooted in the little details like getting ready and seeing all the decor set up.
It Can Help You Make Better Decisions
It goes without saying that a wedding and the months leading up to it aren’t the best times to make any rash choices. And, yes, that even applies to sudden huge purchases that may stem from all that jittery emotion bubbling up. Take breaks when you need to, don’t pressure yourself with gargantuan ideals, and remember that you are planning this to celebrate your love more than anything.
When you plan everything out, you are less likely to turn to coping mechanisms and stress responses. Not only does this avoid a headache later on but gives you the satisfaction of seeing your plans pay off.
It’s also worth remembering that you don’t need to be completely engulfed by your wedding plans. Take time to do what you love, hang out with friends, and be surrounded by nature. Studies by Science Advances show that this legitimately makes people feel happier in the long run. At the end of the day, it’s all about your love and happiness!
