How to Help Your Bride-to-be De-Stress

How to Help Your Bride-to-be De-stress

When it comes to wedding planning, it’s no surprise that a lot of the stress of making everything perfect will fall on you. You were hired to bring your expertise, creativity, and organization skills to ensure the wedding is a success. Although you may feel stressed yourself, it’s likely that your bride-to-be is also feeling a lot of stress on whether she’s making the right decisions throughout the planning process and there’s so much overwhelming information for her to know. This is why it’s essential to have tactics to help her de-stress and stay positive.

1. Listen to her

The best thing you can do for your bride-to-be is listen. When we get stressed out, we don’t necessarily need a bunch of advice thrown at us, but instead we need someone to be a good listener. No matter how crazy her concerns may be, make her feel like they’re valid and important. If you find that the bride seems to be feeling extremely overwhelmed, schedule out some time every week to sit with her over coffee to discuss her wedding-related concerns.

2. Remind her that it’s your job to help

We all know that throughout the wedding planning process, we can get a little stuck in our own heads when we feel overwhelmed– the same idea is true for brides. It’s about to be one of the biggest, most memorable experiences of her life, and like you, she wants it to go off without a hitch. Between sticking to budget, finding the perfect venue, and creating a manageable guest list, it’s important to remind her that you’re here to help take the stress off her plate. You have a background in the wedding community with knowledge and experience to plan and execute an amazing wedding. Sometimes the bride just needs a little reminder of this in order to settle her nerves. Offering to take responsibility for the stressful stuff will also help keep your client happy through the wedding planning process.

3. Stick to the budget and keep her involved in the conversation as things progress

A huge stress for engaged couples is determining, and sticking, to an agreed upon wedding budget. Brides may get stressed if they feel that they’re going to go over budget or if they set the budget too high and are unsure where to scale back. To help reduce this stress for brides, be mindful and respectful of the set budget throughout the planning process. Do some research and find more affordable alternatives to ensure her vision still comes to life without breaking the bank. If for some reason, the expenses for the details she wanted is higher than expected, keep her well informed. For example, if the couple has their heart set on a pricey venue, break down their budget and help them figure out what areas they can scale back on in order to make this compromise work. Being flexible and keeping lines of communication open will create a trusting relationship and in turn calm the bride’s nerves.

4. Encourage her to pamper herself

If the bride is constantly calling, texting, or emailing you and you’re worried she may be on the brink of a break-down, encourage her to schedule time for herself to relax and unwind. Many brides-to-be schedule monthly facials and mani/pedis. Even signing up for yoga or taking time to go on walks by herself may help ease the stress. There are plenty of self-care strategies that help reduce stress. Encourage her to take time to pamper herself in any way that you think may help her relax.

5. Have her write

If the bride is getting too into her head, have her write down her concerns and prioritize them. She can write a list of things she’d like to accomplish that week for the wedding and what has been accomplished that week. If she continues to do this every week, it’ll help her feel more in control of the wedding planning process, even though you’re doing a majority of the planning. It’s been said that journaling can reduce stress and anxiety greatly, and it might even be a good idea for you to do the same if you’re feeling this way!

6. Help her look forward to the honeymoon

The bride may be so preoccupied focusing on the details of the wedding that it’s a great idea to have her focus more on the honeymoon. The honeymoon will be the time after all of the craziness to unwind with her new spouse and forget all the stress. She can look forward to laying on the beach or exploring in a new place. She can even start thinking of the items she needs to pack and make a list. Sunscreen? Check. Medications and birth control? Check. 10 bathing suits so that I can change twice a day? Check.