Current thought

Just take it one step at a time. You have a year, so I promise you have plenty of time. People plan weddings in half that. The to-do lists on here and the Knot are super helpful. Just tackle one thing at a time, starting with the big things (venue, photography, dj, etc) one at a time and then move onto the next. You got this! And we're all here to help!

The checklists are helpful. Have you made these big decisions with your partner: 1) budget, 2) estimated guest list, 3) venue?

I recommend taking it one step at a time. First, pick a venue. That will then help point you in the direction of photography, catering, etc. as many have preferred and/or required vendor lists. When picking the venue, consider the size, price, gathering areas, etc. We had some that we loved but ultimately decided that the drive was too much (we didn't want people driving far after they'd had a few drinks) or we didn't like one space (e.g. we loved the reception space of one, but not their ceremony space). Since you're a year out you have the time to tackle it all in bite size chunks. Don't worry - you've got this!

I felt the same way as you when I first started wedding planning! I prioritized what we needed to get done first, which was selecting our venue and our photographer, and then I chose to do something fun to get me in the spirit of planning, which was going wedding dress shopping. I invited people who I knew I'd have fun with and we just had a blast of a day. It really brought my spirits up and put me in that wedding planning mode. So maybe try to throw something fun in the mix too! Even if it's just a dinner with a friend to kind of talk about how exciting this time is, definitely do something to get yourself more in the spirit of planning. It can be stressful and overwhelming, so I totally understand how you're feeling!

I totally get it Jasmine! Planning my wedding was way more stressful than I thought!!

The best advice I got is what Hannah & devotedlydavis have said - take it one step at a time! Whenever I got overwhelmed I would force myself to focus on only the next item on my checklist. This helped keep me on track, instead of trying to make every single wedding decision all at once!!

Also here are some great tips for whenever you're feeling the wedding stress:

7 Ways to Reduce Wedding-Planning Stress, from a Meditation Expert

The first two things we did were talk budget and guest list and then started looking at venues. All of that was VERY overwhelming for me and I got more stressed than excited. Now that we've locked in a date and a venue, and have the budget and preliminary guest list, more and more excitement is creeping in as we plan the other details.