We asked Bounce Creator Lianne to share her best pre-wedding tips with us before she heads down the aisle. We wish her and Tom a lifetime of love and happiness!
How to survive planning a wedding
In precisely 5 days, 3 hours and 22 minutes, I will be making my way down the aisle about to embark upon a beautiful marriage with my very best friend. Although we have been together almost four years, we only got engaged this January and when he proposed, Tom made it very clear to me that he wanted to be married within the year.
I went along with him thinking deep down that there would be no way we would be able to plan a wedding within a year and I was right – we have done it in under 8 months instead!
As the big day draws closer, both mums seem to be giving me squinted looks wondering at what point I will freak out and become the dreaded Bridezilla!
Of course things have gone wrong in the past 8 months, we’ve changed venues, I have had 5 dress fittings as the seamstress kept getting it wrong, we have had family fall outs (apparently obligatory for any wedding although I still cannot fathom why!), we have been let down and we also unknowingly had two bands booked at the same time! However, I refuse to become a Bridezilla, I refuse to get bogged down in the trivial parts of a wedding and blow them out of all proportion.
As a holistic therapist and wellbeing trainer who passionately practises everything she preaches, I have drawn upon almost every single technique I know to deal with the past eight months and am now being asked what my secret is to remaining calm during what is generally considered one of the most stressful times of your life, so here we go! Whilst these tips apply to my wedding, they can also be applied to any period of stress you may be exposed to.
1. Retain Perspective!
I have never once allowed myself to forget why we are having this big day, it is simple for us. We very much want to be married, to be husband and wife and embark upon our journey in life as a united front. It is all too easy to lose perspective and focus solely on the wedding, whereas the focus should truly be on the marriage.
In truth, we were happy to go and get married in Las Vegas (yes we very seriously almost did that) however, we are both blessed with some really special people in our lives and we knew that making our commitment to each other would be extra special if we felt surrounded by love. We have therefore chosen this wedding as a way to celebrate our love and commence our married life, we never allow ourselves to forget this.
2. Don’t sweat the petty things!
Of course I want our wedding to be beautiful, I want people to have a good time and I want people to feel appreciated for being there, but seriously how many people would notice if we had candelabras or bouquets on the table?
As I said, things have gone wrong for us at times but so long as we remember why we are doing it, the little things have not bothered us. If things go wrong on the day, we will handle it, so long as we are both together.
3. Breathe
Whenever we feel stress or anxiety start to build up in our bodies, our breathing becomes shallow. Breathing only from the chest prevents vital oxygen being sent throughout our bodies and only serves to increase our anxiety. Therefore, whenever tensions have got high, my first priority is to ensure that I am breathing properly.
Breathing in should result in your belly being pushed out and breathing out should result in your belly contracting. Breathing like this for just a minute reduces your heart rate and blood pressure, clearing your mind to be able to deal with whatever issue is facing you.
4. Meditate
Meditation is a critical part of my daily self care and has been even more important during this period. Meditation is simply an awareness, so allowing my mind to focus purely on my breathing enables my mental, spiritual and physical self to recuperate.
5. Crystals
As a crystal healer, crystals are always a priority in my life. I’ve found that over the past few months I have been carrying five main crystals around with me and they have proved invaluable:
Labradorite – My favourite crystal and one that offers both psychic and spiritual protection, great for dealing with any family upsets!
Citrine – Known as the Merchants stone, citrine is great for bringing abundance into your life (very helpful when loads of wedding bills need paying!). It is also a feel good stone.
Sunstone – Like carrying sunshine in your pocket, one of the crystal worlds natural antidepressants, a great mood booster and a stone that enables you to look on the brighter side.
Rose Quartz – The Love stone! This crystal not only encourages love within your life, it also makes you feel loved. Perfect for reminding me why I am doing this!
Jet – My favourite crystal for absorbing negative energies, so even if everyone around me is stressed out and losing their heads, I remain calm and unaffected!
Of course, I still have 5 days 3 hours and 2 minutes (now!) left and anything could happen but by using these five techniques, no matter what happens I will commit to remaining calm, keeping perspective and most of all remembering why I am doing this!
If you have any tips or advice you think could help me in the next 5 days, then I would be delighted to hear about them in the comments!
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