Friday 24 August 2012

Keep Calm and Marry On - how to calm those pre wedding jitters

They are perfectly normal and very few of us would expect not to get them.  However, that does not stop them from being a pain in the neck when they turn up.  No, I'm not talking about your in-laws, I mean pre-wedding nerves.




I was talking to a friend recently who told me that on the night before her wedding, her mother gave her sleeping tablets so that she could get some proper sleep.  Every time she woke in the night she took another tablet.  By morning, she was calmer than she'd ever been.  In fact, she was so calm she barely remembers a thing about her wedding day.  Apart from the fact that her mother seemed to have absorbed all the stress instead!




Whilst taking pills seemingly worked for her, it's certainly not recommended for everybody.  It's definitely not advisable if you've never used them before.  Here are some top tips for helping you relax:

1) 7 Days


Start your relaxation programme 7 days before the wedding.  Get in a routine.  Being in bed by the same time every night is vital.  This can be tricky with out-of-towners and people you haven't seen for years coming to visit you and spend time with you, so do push yourself.  The lead up to weddings is stressful and hectic, so why not ask the out-of-towners to hang around AFTER the wedding once all the pressure is off?

2) Delegation


If you can avoid doing it yourself, I strongly recommend you get someone else to do.  Ask them nicely, of course, and if they say No, don't harrass them to do it, but it's not outside the duties of a maid of honour/chief bridesmaid or mother-of-the-bride to run small errands for you, e.g. picking up dresses, shoes, double-checking readers have the right readings, accompanying you to hair/beauty appointments.  Try to take a couple of days off work before the wedding in order to pace out your last-days tasks.

3) Food and drink


Eating the right foods can definitely lower stress levels and help you sleep better.  Avoid carbs and saturated fats in the evening as these will sit heavily in your stomach until morning.  Cut out caffeine after midday.  Instead drink lots of water and caffeine free teas (N.B: Not all green teas are caffeine free!)

4) Exercise


5) Comfy sheets!

Bedroom-Elegant-Blue-Bed-Linen

One of my personal favourite ways of guaranteeing a good night's sleep is some new bed linen.  That, and new pyjamas.  There's nothing quite like the feel of them.  Another tip is to fill your room with the gentle scent of lavender.  In aromatherapy, lavender is the a calming agent.  Put some dried bunches next to your spread, or sprinkle a few drops of lavender all on a hanky to slip inside your pillowcase.

Remember: Marriage is a tricky affair; the wedding is just the start.

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