Brides who have to get up early, what do you do to avoid being tired/sleepy on your wedding day?

Hopefully you would be full of adrenaline so you don't notice the tiredness. You could also try coffee and maybe a short run in the morning. And definitely try to get enough sleep during the week of the wedding.


I think the only other way is to change your sleep rhythm before the wedding. I would start at least 4 weeks before the wedding. The first days you get up half an hour earlier than usual and go to bed half an hour earlier. Than another half an hour and so on. Until you get to 6:30am. But during this time you have to be disciplined and don't allow exceptions. Even on the weekend. And no afternoon naps.

It's definitely possible to change your rhythm. My husband used to sleep from around 1am to 8am. And now he sleeps from 11pm to 6:30am.

Consistency is key and when you go to bed plus good sleep hygiene.

I’m an early riser (4:30 weekdays, 5:30ish weekends), but that’s because I have to be. It was always a struggle until I started using a sunrise alarm clock. I am in bed by 10 every weeknight & by midnight on weekends. It took a few months of consistency to be able to stay up past 9!

This is exactly why we decided to have an evening wedding, and will definitely NOT be doing a first look. I know I am going to have a hard time falling asleep out of anticipation and excitement, and I do not want to be tired during our wedding, reception, or after party. By having an evening wedding and no first look, the hair and make up artists won’t even have to arrive at the hotel until 1:00. So I will be able to sleep in, enjoy my coffee and room service breakfast, get a massage, and take a nice long relaxing shower before starting to prep for the event.


If you want to make sure you fall asleep at a decent time the night before, I would suggest limiting the amount of sleep you get the night prior, so you will be extra tired. You could also have some warm sleepytime milk and take some melatonin to help relax you and fall asleep. Also, I have always found that an electric blanket (or even just a heating pad placed on the stomach or back) is super soothing and always puts me to sleep.

I would start by getting up everyday at 6 or 6:30 for like a week or two... your body will get used to it. On days I don’t work, I still wake up at 6 because my internal clock wakes me up.

I had to get up at 7am for my wedding (even though it was an evening wedding ending at 10:30pm). I am also not an early riser and will sleep until noon if left alone. I woke up at 5:30am because of excitement and we didn't go to sleep until 1am that night. The excitement and adrenaline is real lol.

Definitely something that is going to take a few early days and late nights to get this worked out, but I think it's not going to be too hard. Getting up early to get ready for your weeding and then staying up late for your wedding reception is much different than getting up early to go to work and then sit on your couch for the night. I think with all that is happening you won't be as tried as you think since there will be tons going on around you. Now once you leave an wind down crashing for the night will probably happen.

I would start getting into a routine as quick as possible. They say it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. You’ll have to adjust your evening/night routine too.

Love these comments, very helpful! Yes, i agree. The best advice i seen was to get a new sleep pattern about a month prior to / leading up to the wedding. Also maybe having an evening wedding, where the ceremony starts early afternoon. To allow you to wake up around maybe 9am. Although wedding day excitement might wake you early anyways... hehe

In a similar boat! My ceremony will be at 11:00am (Catholic), but the reception won’t be until the evening.

Anxiety lol

I'm doing a rehearsal brunch instead of a rehearsal dinner the day before, for this exact reason! I'm a terrible sleeper on a normal day. The night before my sisters wedding I only slept 2 hours, and it wasn't even my wedding lol. So it's gonna go meet for brunch, then rehearse the ceremony, then the girls will go get nails done and such, then I can get to bed by like 8 pm 😴

Adrenaline will keep you going!

I’m someone who needs lots of sleep and I feel like i’m tired all the time but I was not tired AT ALL on my wedding day. The adrenaline really will keep you going in my opinion!!

I have to be up and ready to start hair and makeup at 2:00 AM (sunrise ceremony starts at 6).

The night before, I will be in bed by 8pm. Not necessarily asleep, but at least horizontal with my head on a pillow. My phone will be charging across the room, so no temptation to get stuck scrolling.

In the morning, coffee and a glass of orange juice and plenty of light protein options.

Luckily, we get up early every day (not 2 Am early, but between 4 and 5) and frequently get up at around 2 to start various hiking and road trips where I have to be a human super early, so it isn't 100% out of my comfort zone.

I just keep telling myself that the sunrise pictures will be worth it.

Thank you for all the amazing comments here! This is really an amazing community. I'll try adjusting my sleeping schedule gradually from now on (I still have around 3 months)

Why do you have to get up so early? What time does your wedding start?

6:30am-10pm is a long day. Unless you have events happening that whole time I feel like maybe you can sleep in more than you think?

View Quoted Comment My makeup artist comes in at 7AM and we have a photo shoot starting at 9AM.

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Are you having a morning ceremony? Is your entire day fully planned? That just seems like a SUPER long day to me.

Caffeine 🤷🏼‍♀️
It’s what I use anytime I need to stay awake. You could also try adjusting yourself up until the wedding date to get more used to waking up early