Don't Have Time? Do It Anyway

In the weeks before our wedding, I was a blubbering mess. I felt so stressed out, and EVERYTHING set me off. I felt like I didn't have time to take care of myself. More than anything, I wanted to go to the gym, and veg out and watch my DVRed shows, and make dinner at home instead of picking up McDonald's for the umpteenth time.

At the same time, I felt like those needs took a backseat to the greater need of making-this-wedding-happen-dammit. So I rushed around and didn't allow myself downtime and I continued to sob at least once a day over the poor freaked-out guy marrying me.

Then, on the Tuesday before the wedding, I had planned to meet up with a few girls from church. I stopped by Mr. Hyena's house to go over a few things before going to meet the girls, cried on him some more and made us both miserable, then blew my nose and headed off to the coffee shop where we were meeting.

And I still wanted to cry for the first 20 minutes or so, but then something miraculous happened. I didn't want to cry anymore. I was laughing. The wedding suddenly seemed much smaller. I started looking forward to things that are coming up after the wedding. I stopped stress eating.

Spending time with other women consistently is one of the things that I've missed the most since I moved to be with Mr. Hyena. I feel like it seriously calms my soul. Hanging out with those ladies was exactly what I needed.

So whatever it is that calms YOUR soul, do it. I don't care if you think you have too many other, more important, more pressing wedding things to do. You'll be more productive if you stop freaking out and spend a little time taking care of yourself. Go for a run. Take a nap. Watch The Office. Make dinner. Get coffee with a friend and don't talk about the wedding. Read for a while. Hug your partner and let them kiss you deeply.

You'll feel better. I promise.

And you know what? Even though I took a little "me" time, I got everything done by the Wednesday before the wedding. So there.

What calms your soul?