The last several weeks before the wedding can be the most stressful time period of the entire wedding planning process. Sure, the big items are all taken care of. The dress has been ordered, as have the flowers, photography, and the cake. But there are a ton of details that need to be wrapped up. Things like figuring out the seating plan at the reception. Like picking out your wedding cake jewelry or your bridesmaids gifts. And do not forget arranging someone to pick up aunt Georgina at the airport after your cousin bailed on you.



And that is assuming that your florist's shop does not burn down two weeks before your wedding... The whole thing can get to be a little bit overwhelming.

You can not avoid the pre-wedding stress entirely - no, not even if you have enough money to afford to hire a full service wedding planning service that claims all you have to do is show up.

You will not avoid it entirely no matter what you do, but you can take some steps to help yourself survive. So here are seven tips to help you in controlling the pre-wedding stress:

Go Out to Dinner: Go alone or with a friend or with your intended. It does not matter. What does matter is taking the time to slow down enough to sit and enjoy a high quality, healthy meal (sorry, no junk food). You need the time out and your body needs the nutrients. A nourished and rested body is better equipped to face the stress of last minute wedding preparations.

Take a Trip to the Health Spa: Make an outing of it with your bridesmaids and let yourself be pampered. Not only will you come out looking better than ever, but you will feel more prepared to handle the stress of this period of your life.

Prayer / Meditation: One of the chief benefits of prayer and meditation is that it helps you put things in perspective. Measured against an almightily God and all of creation, your wedding preparation stresses are relatively insignificant. When you see them in that light, it becomes much easier to control your stress level and deal with problems as they arise.

Work Out: Exercise your stress away. Really. It works. You see, exercise prompts the body to release a chemical called endorphins - resulting in a natural high, helping you to feel better after a stressful day dealing with all the details of putting together a wedding. Better yet, it has the added advantage of creating a healthier you, toned up to fit into your wedding dress (one common pre-wedding related stressor) and better equipped to handle wedding related stress.

Go to a Movie: This is not date night. If you are stressed get some of your girlfriends and catch a chick flick. If your future husband is pulling out his hair, send him off with some of his buddies to watch Bruce Willis blow something up. You need to let yourself be what you are, let him be what he is. Things work better that way.

Go Do Anything Active: Anything, that is that is not wedding related. Go for a hike. Try to learn to windsurf. Mountain bike. Ride horses. Ski. Walk on the beach. The point here is not the exercise, though you might get some of those benefits too, the point is that you can purge your wedding related stress often by simply giving yourself a change of pace. Do something fun, but do something active so that your mind does not wander back to the pile of wedding related jobs yet to be done.

Get Away as a Couple: Go for a picnic. Go for a day trip to the beach. It does not matter as long as you take the time to work on your relationship - not the wedding, your relationship. You are getting married to your best friend, but modern weddings have a way of driving a wedge between couples. You will enjoy your wedding day (not to mention the rest of your life) a whole lot more if you take time periodically to build your relationship during the wedding planning process and make sure that the wedding is not undermining your marriage.

Create or Buy a Wedding Day Survival Kit: We have all heard the stories of wedding day stress run amok over a broken nail, lost bobby pin, spilled snack or??? Going to the effort to have a wedding day survival kit in an easy to carry case ready to pick up and take to the ceremony with you will give you great peace of mind.

Yes, the weeks running up to the wedding day are demanding. But if you take time to purge the stress regularly and intentionally, you will have a great foundation for a happy and healthy wedding day.