The intensely positive feeling of having everyone cater to you and being the center of attention for an entire day or even longer can be hard to come down from, especially if you're expected to do so abruptly. If you've been feeling a little down since your wedding or honeymoon ended, some coping techniques may help you feel better and get over those post-wedding blues.
Schedule Buffer Time
Going straight from your reception to your honeymoon or straight from your honeymoon back to work gives you little time to relax, take it all in and compliment yourself on the life-changing event you just accomplished. If you can, schedule your honeymoon for a day or two after the wedding to give yourself time to prepare. It is also important to give yourself time to transition from your once-in-a-lifetime honeymoon to your everyday work life. Spend a few days at home before heading back to the office. During this time, you can take care of the following:
- Unpack your suitcases and wedding stuff
- Look through photos and decide which ones to frame
- Spend time integrating households if you haven't already
- Take care of name changes or other legal obligations
- Relax and spend time with your partner in your home environment
Plan Events for After Your Wedding
One reason so many people feel down after their wedding and honeymoon is because there is nothing to be excited for. By planning things to do with family, friends and your spouse after the honeymoon, you can ease the post-wedding blues. One way to do this is to keep a list of restaurants, art spaces or other things that interest you but that you haven't had time to see because you were planning your wedding. You can also look for events like concerts or upcoming movies that get you excited and add them to your calendar.
Don't Forget About Your Wedding Groups
You probably joined quite a few wedding websites, forums, Facebook groups and more while you were planning your own wedding. Just because you've tied the knot doesn't mean your input isn't valuable. In fact, you are in a unique position because you've already had your wedding. This allows you to offer advice and answer questions from a new perspective, helping other spouses-to-be as you do so.
Write Unique Thank-You Notes
You can't get out of writing thank-you notes for your wedding gifts, so why not make them creative? Instead of including the same message in each one, personalize them by adding a sentence or two about a memory you have of the person at your wedding or even one you remember from theirs if you were a guest. The more creative you are, the better you'll feel and the more your card recipients will enjoy the mail.
Talk to Someone
You aren't the first person to suffer from post-wedding blues, and you won't be the last. Do you have friends who have planned big weddings? Perhaps they also dealt with feeling down and have some ideas about how to cope. Talk to your spouse about your feelings as well after all, part of the reason you married him or her was because you wanted to be there for each other through everything. If you feel too silly to talk to a friend or your partner about it, consider talking to your therapist. Keeping your feelings inside will likely do more damage than good and could make you fall into a more severe depression.
Symptoms of post-wedding blues are similar to those of traditional depression. You may feel sad, lonely or isolated from your loved ones. Things you liked to do before planning your wedding may make you feel bored now, or you may not have energy to do what you do love. If you try coping techniques but do not feel as if your symptoms are improving, seek advice from a professional.
Add Your Comment