After relishing in the excitement of becoming engaged and spending the rest of your life with your best friend, it’s time to begin planning for your big day. Of course, you’ll need to select a venue and a caterer, and then it’s on to other vendors such as a florist and a DJ. While all of this decision making is bringing you one step closer to your big day, it’s completely normal to feel overwhelmed along the way. Added stress, especially during wedding planning, can have a negative effect on you both mentally and physically and can potentially keep you from feeling 100 percent on one of the best days of your life. In honor of Stress Awareness Month taking place throughout April, and the upcoming wedding season, we’re sharing some tips below on how to positively channel these anxious feelings in order to enjoy your planning experience as well as your wedding day.
Book Trial Runs
Let’s face it; everybody stresses about their appearance on an average day. So imagine the heightened stress about feeling and looking fabulous on your wedding day! It doesn’t help that it also happens to be one of the most photographed days of your life. To help ensure you’re happy with your look when the big day rolls around, book a few trial appointments with your glam squad ahead of time. Brides-to-be, call your makeup artist and hairstylist to go over your desired wedding day hair and makeup. Bring along visuals such as photos from your Pinterest board or the color scheme you’re going with for inspiration. Planning your look ahead of time will give you an idea of just how beautiful you’ll look on your wedding day and provide an opportunity to tweak any minor or last-minute details.
Bonus Tip: Guys, visiting your barber or hairstylist ahead of time has added benefits for you as well. Perhaps you’re going for a perfectly groomed beard, or maybe wedding planning stress has left your mane a little thinner than you’d like – your stylist can suggest suitable products such as beard oil to help condition your facial hair. If the hair on your head, or lack thereof, is raising concern, check out this resource to learn more about the benefits of finasteride, a prescription treatment used to treat male pattern baldness. After all, this is your big day too!
Practice Self-Care
At times, it may feel like wedding planning is taking over your life. Between emails, phone calls, and meetings with vendors, prepping for your big day can feel like a full-time job. To avoid burnout, establishing a self-care routine is a must! By definition, self-care is the practice of taking an active role in one’s well being. However, the beauty of this is, the possibilities to engage in it are endless. Whether it’s a nightly beauty routine complete with a bubble bath and face mask followed by the application of your favorite anti-aging cream, or an hour spent at your local coffee shop reading a few pages of a new book, carving out a little time for yourself is a great way to combat stress and give your mind and body a break.
Break a Sweat
A great way to channel stress is adding a workout into your daily routine. While exercise and a balanced diet are a great way to shed a few pounds before your wedding day, getting physical has benefits that stretch far beyond weight loss. Physical activity releases endorphins in the brain, which cause you to feel happy. Exercise also provides the body with an increase in energy and boosts immunity to help fight off any stress-induced sickness. Another great thing about exercise is that you don’t have to be an amazing athlete to partake. A simple walk around your neighborhood each day can bring you more stress-relief than you’d think. However, if you’re pressed for time but still interested in putting your body to work, you can visit your local gym and check out a HIIT class. To maintain accountability, get your partner involved, and exercise together. This provides an excellent opportunity for both of you to step away from wedding planning and participate in an activity together.
Wedding planning and all the emotion that comes along with it will be a time in your life you will always remember. You want these memories to be happy ones, and while feeling a little stressed is a given, doing your best to keep your cool and channel that stress through participating in some of the tips above is a sure-fire way to ensure that you will look and feel your best when the big day rolls around!