You toss and turn at night. You’ve got your Big Day on the brain. The ‘what if’s’ are making your mind a superhighway of worry. You’ve got wedding panic.
Before you head to the liquor cabinet for a ‘shot and a beer’, take comfort in knowing that you are not alone. There are oodles of brides experiencing Big Day anxiety. Here are some of their top worries – and some antidotes for wedding panic.
1. We won’t have enough money to have the wedding we really want. Money is one of the top stressors for couples planning a wedding, especially in today’s economy. It’s no wonder. There’s enormous pressure on brides to have the perfect wedding. It’s perpetuated in the mainstream media, and by celebrity culture – not to mention other brides who will stop at nothing to ‘wow’ their guests. The key to dampening those fears is to realize that creativity and resourcefulness can go a long way to helping you create the wedding you want without blowing your budget. There are a slew of DIY wedding ideas out there that can save you a bundle. Being resourceful can also mean getting friends and family involved in the process, which creates a more meaningful experience. And of course, cutting your guest list to only those who are close to you will make a significant difference in your wedding costs. You just might find that by having fewer guests, you can still splurge on the things that really matter to you.
2. Our guests won’t show up. You’ve sent out 75 invitations, but so far only 40 have responded that they will be there. You feel insulted, not to mention peeved. Why aren’t more invitees making the effort to be there? Don’t take it personally. With so many people facing job losses and instability, dropping hundreds of dollars for travel and wedding gifts just isn’t feasible for everyone. Take the glass half full approach, and realize that the wedding guests who do show up are the ones that are supposed to be there.
3. We’ll have bad weather on our Big Day. Mother Nature. She’s glorious and she’s cruel. She’s beautiful and she’s brutal. She’s also downright unpredictable and a major cause of wedding panic. No matter how hard we pray and invite good karma, there’s no way to guarantee good weather. If you’re a serious weather worry wart, opt for an indoor wedding and don’t have a winter wedding. For entertainment purposes, you can track your wedding day weather at Weather.com. Just don’t bet your wedding on its accuracy.
4.My face will break out just before the wedding. Although you can’t prevent stress-induced acne, there are steps you can take to reduce your chances of breaking out on your Big Day. First, don’t use any products that you don’t normally use. Stick with tried and true cleaners, cleansers, moisturizers and make up. Pamper your skin before the wedding (try a clay mask if you’ve used one before), and always wash your face before bed. If you do find yourself breaking out just before your wedding day, you might want to consult with a cosmetician to find out the best method of covering up your break out. Also, talk with your photographer. Chances are she’ll assure you that she’s using blemish control software (a.k.a Adobe Photoshop) on your wedding photos.
5. I’ll trip on my way to the altar. Considering that shyness affects half of the population and that 13 percent of the population has an extreme form of social anxiety called social phobia, it’s safe to say that there are many brides (and grooms) who agonize over the fact that they have to be the centre of attention for their wedding day. For many of these brides, the thought of walking down the aisle is the number one source of their wedding panic. “What if I trip? What if I make a fool out of myself?” If you’ve got aisle anxiety, take a deep breath and read Shy Brides: Tips for Easing Wedding Panic for some great tips on how to combat anxiety.
Photo: Erica Bader
