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Lesley Stratton Hughes is a pre-wedding life coach who helps people to create their authentic wedding, overcome anxiety and stress and prepare emotionally and psychologically for the transition from being single to married.
Visit the website for more information, inspiration and support for your wedding journey and to find out about coaching.
THE AUTHENTIC WEDDING - Lesley Stratton-Hughes
Are you planning your wedding - and sick of competitive-spending celebrity-style nuptials? There is another way...
Nowadays it would appear that the thrilling decision to get married and the exciting business of planning a wedding is something of a double-edged sword. A chorus of congratulations may still be ringing in the ears of the newly engaged couple but the commercial world of wedding planning is hot on their heels and their happiness is tempered by a sense of panic and looming pressure.
As the average cost of a wedding nears the £20,000 mark, stories of severe wedding planning stress are rife. While a lucky few manage to flourish in creating their beautiful day, there are many more that are daunted and overwhelmed by the vast choice available and feel paralysed by the enormity of the task.
Style over substance
Celebrity style weddings have become a national obsession and the phrase Competitive Wedding Syndrome applies to the manic couple who will stop at nothing to prove their status and impress their guests. Few will have planned to take this route but the omnipresent force of the £5 billion wedding industry brainwashes people into thinking that pink flamingos and chocolate fountains are the way to go.
It seems that the so-called success of a contemporary wedding rests on a pre-written and impersonal checklist of all that you need and all that you must do. Its very presence appears to cause hysteria and rob people of their innate ability to make congruent decisions for themselves.
While most weddings end up being ‘alright on the night’, this approach to creating a day of special and personal celebration leaves a lot to be desired. Understandably, the resounding feeling is that wedding planning is a hellish experience and it’s a great shame that such a negative connection is made with this significant rite of passage.
Bringing it back to you
A different approach will bring about an altogether different, much more enjoyable experience and breaking away from the confines of the formula can bring huge relief. Instead of looking outside of oneself for all the answers and the ‘right’ way to plan a modern day wedding, there is a chance to embark on a very personal journey and look to yourself to provide the way that is right for you.
Your wedding is, in every sense, a creation. Piece by piece you bring together elements that will eventually be identified and remembered as your wedding day. You face one of life’s great opportunities to truly express yourself before an audience of people who love and care about you. Far from being something to dread, it is, in fact an enviable place to be!
There is a famous philosophical quote from Ancient China that says, ‘At the centre of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want. That has particular resonance right now.Thesemonths before you marry are a perfect time to connect more deeply with yourself, your life and history and discover what you are passionate about and what makes you tick.
Instead of planning a wedding that sets out to impress and fulfil expectations, there is great joy to be had from creating a day that is authentic to who you and your partner are.
Authentic means ‘of undisputed origin.’ Therefore an authentic wedding will
- come from you
- represent you
- capture your essence as a couple and as individuals
- communicate your intentions
- radiate your energy
- reflect your personal style
- be connected to you and you to it
The result is a wedding that has meaning, feeling, warmth, poignancy, beauty and above all, heart and soul.
The seven step check list above will help to keep you on track in creating a wedding that is truly from the core of who you are and align with your values, beliefs, hopes and vision.
When you aim for something that is honest, genuine and true you will be surprised at how positive your experience can be. It will still be a challenge and there will be setbacks but your sense of achievement from creating this day that is an extension of you and your life will put you on a great big high!
