“Bridezilla- A woman who has become so possessed and obsessed with her Wedding plans that she has merged into a hybrid events/catering/ambience driven monster. Stopping at nothing to create ‘her perfect day’.” – urbandictionary.com

Has the pressure of planning your wedding escalated to your head?  As one of the biggest days in your life is drawing closer each passing day while you’re still stuck with an overwhelming ‘to-do’ list, it’s tough to keep calm under all the stress of planning your wedding. It’s natural to feel anxious when you’re organising an event for such a momentous day with around a hundred guests attending. Here’s how you can deal with the stress before you start evolving into a rabid, snarling bridezilla.

1. Don’t have a celebrity wedding


Every bride wants the perfect dream wedding but it is good be realistic. Before planning details of the wedding like making a grand helicopter entrance, you and your fiance should sit down and discuss if that grand helicopter entrance can accommodate your budget. Once the both of you have come up with the allocated funds for the wedding, remember to stick to it. While it is important for a bride to feel like a million dollars on her wedding day, know your depths and don’t spend on what you can’t afford. You don’t want to lurch yourself right into another stress of having to deal with financial debts after the wedding.

2.Invest in a wedding planner
Don’t feel like no brainer if you ever find yourself having to turn to a wedding planner. While you may have over 20 wedding theme ideas in mind and you’re losing your head over the different shades of white for the table cloth, an experienced wedding planner who understands your vision can be a big help. Don’t shoulder all the decisions on your own. Hiring a wedding planner and vendors who you can trust will ease your worries as they can offer expert advice and assist with coordinating the wedding while you enjoy your big day. You can relinquish some planning duties to them so you can focus on more important details.

3.Be flexible and don’t micromanage
When someone close to you offers help, let them help you. It only means that they are genuinely interested to be part of  the team in making your big day happen and they have the best intentions. Don’t be afraid to delegate tasks. Plus, the wedding doesn’t always have to be ‘my day’. Involve your partner and think about it as ‘our day’. Many brides may not appreciate what people try to do for them and their plans but that’s not a valid excuse to act like a bossy diva. Learn to listen and appreciate what people around you have to say. You may not agree with their ideas but at the end of the day, the final decision is in your hands whether you want to take any of it on board. Be grateful that your best friends agreed to take up the vital responsibilities of a bridesmaid. Try to be flexible and don’t terrorise your bridal party like this bride here.

4.Know that it won’t be perfect
No matter how well you ensure that everything goes smoothly according to plan, don’t expect it to be perfect. There are bound to be one or two hiccups but learn to smile about it. Whenever sometimes goes wrong, lighten up and have a sense of humour! Even a royal wedding like Prince William and Catherine Middleton’s can turn out to be pretty amusing thanks to their adorable flower girl. Instead of having a bridezilla meltdown, don’t sweat over the minor details and go decide to have fun! You probably don’t remember the minor hiccups that happened at someone else’s big day when thinking back to the weddings you’ve been to in the past. Your wedding should be a day where you and your spouse can look back together in fondness years from now.

5.Take your time finding your ideal wedding dress

You won’t really know what exactly you’re looking for in a wedding dress and finding your dream gown can be stressful. Browse through Luulla for some ideas and grab your bridesmaids along to get their opinion. My advice would be to focus first on the dress silhouette that suits your bridal style. Go for a gown that you’ll feel glamorous and sexy in rather than what’s the trending. Don’t leave out the important details such as the top of your wedding dress and accessorises as it is what people will notice most and it shows up in wedding photos.

6.Take a time out
While it’s easy to get carried away and be overwhelmed by the wedding, remember to take a breather and make time for yourself. The key here is finding a balance between your daily tasks, relationships and planning an enormous party for your invited guests. If you’re getting frustrated and stressed out with all the planning, organise a girls’ night out and take a wedding time out to relax. You should be enjoying the experience of planning a wedding as it only happens once. Make ground rules such as ‘no talks about the weddings’ at meal times.

7.Take it easy on your body
Crazy crash diets have the tendency to make the bride-to-be hangry. Not just brides, they turn ANYONE into a kind of monster. How are you going to plan your wedding without reducing your bridesmaid to tears then? Everyone would want to be in the best shape of our lives especially since the moments will be captured in their wedding photos. However, don’t over do it as extreme eating regimes can leave you feeling physically and mentally drained. Ideally, plan ahead to lose those few pounds gradually or consult a nutritionist.

8.Remember why you’re having a wedding

Just remember that your wedding is the day where you’re walking down the aisle to marry the man of your dreams. No matter how big or small the ceremony, it’s a celebration of love between you and your husband-to-be. It marks the day you promise to share hopes and dreams as you build your lives together for as long as the both of you shall live.