Rachel Getting Married

No, not the movie about the woman leaving rehab and her sister's wedding . . . I'm officially getting married! My wonderful boyfriend of a year proposed via an eReader and a written story about our lives together this past Friday, and I sobbed as I saw him down on one knee.  Yes, waiting for the surprise was agony (see last post, I don't deal with surprise too well), but we couldn't be happier. To be honest, I, personally, couldn't be happier - especially in light of my recent SPD-diagnosis. Josh has been supportive above-and-beyond the call of duty for the majority of men out there. He cheered with me when I was diagnosed, and cried with me as I stopped to consider how to let SPD become a positive part of my already-established life. He had angry words for my school's administration. He continues to brush my back at regular intervals, reminds me to shower the second I walk into my apartment (I find it centering and calming, a way to withdraw from the overstimulation of the day), and is willing to work with me to make our wedding "Rachel-friendly." I have hit the SPD-partner-jackpot (and the everything-else-partner-jackpot too) :-)

Now the question remains: how to throw a 150-person wedding without sending me into a tailspin of symptoms? Yes. Something I look forward to debating more with my OT and her intern, and something I hope you SPDers out there (here and on D's boards) will be able to help settle. I've already suggested that we go visually-minimalistic. The space needs to be contained enough for my funky proprioceptive sense to handle (don't want to "fall off the room" on my wedding day!) and well-sized enough so that the DJ music isn't too overwhelming (what's up, auditory reflexes), and the throng of guests isn't too taxing (oh, vision).

We've already started discussing details, like flowers (we're hoping off-white roses and blue hydrangeas - familiar and friendly - and especially simple), venue (TBD, but the simple criteria remains), and clothing (comfortable wedding dress! Nothing too strapped-in, nothing that makes me anxious to have on, no extraneous lace or bows or buttons). It's going to be a huge challenge, but with such an amazing, supportive man by my side, I know it will be a day remembered not in SPD-related-agitation and anxiety, but in joy.