Top tips for de-stressing

Pre-wedding preparations getting on top of you? Take some time out to wind down

Learn to delegate

Feeling responsibility for every aspect of your wedding can be a hugely stressful burden. Spend as much time as possible planning what needs to be done -- but also who is going to do it. You're likely to be surrounded by offers of help, so don't turn them down because you think only you know best.

Encourage help, and supervise where necessary. Aim to be the manager of your wedding, not the dogsbody.

Build in some time for yourself

A little me-time is vital to any stress management programme. Every evening, make sure you take time out just to relax and unwind. If it's hard to find space at home, go for a walk or to the cinema. Why not book yourself in for a massage?

Better still, in the weeks before your ceremony, plan a weekend away with mates to pamper and unwind. Ban all wedding talk (and see how long you can stick to that!).

Talk to yourself nicely

What psychologists refer to as “negative self-talk” can be a real downer. Bombarding yourself with unhelpful thoughts such as “It's all going to go wrong!” or “I'll look a right state on the day!” can make the job of preparing doubly hard.

Start disciplining yourself to think and talk positively. Avoid words like “not”, “ought” and “should”. Turn “fears” into “challenges”, “nerves” into “excitement”.

And try repeating an affirmation to yourself -- a potent, positive sentence which you repeat until the thought sticks. Try something like “Every day, I'm getting closer to the wedding I want”. Say it over and over, in a traffic jam, on the train, and write it over and over too.

Just say NO

Now is not the time to be a people-pleaser. There may be lots of people around you who want to have their say about how your wedding should be arranged. But this is your day, and while you will want to accommodate others' views, much stress can be avoided if you start as you mean to go on, clearly asserting your wishes and plans wherever possible, and not encouraging suggestions that you know will eventually be turned down. Being honest is the best policy all round.