You and your spouse are thrilled to finally be married! Your family and friends? Not so much. After eloping, it can be incredibly disappointing to find that the special people in your life are not at all happy with your decision.

What should you do - ignore them, because they'll get over it? Try to placate them by apologising? We take a look at some of the ways you can handle the fallout you may be facing after eloping.

5 Tips On Dealing with Friends & Family After Eloping

You expect family and friends to be surprised when they hear of your elopement. But hurt? No, that shouldn’t happen because of course, it was your day and your decision - not theirs. All too often though, couples who have eloped receive a less than warm welcome when others hear their news.

So, we've put together a collection of five tips to help you and your spouse navigate this period with grace and guts!

  • Tell those closest to you first (and in person, if possible). Your Mum may have been dreaming about this day all of your life, so it’s only fair that you tell her first. Being told first can help smooth ruffled feathers and who knows, they may even be able to help you spread the word around.
  • Share your elopement memories with others. Hopefully, you've got photos or a video of your ceremony! Pop it up on YouTube as a private video and share the link with others so they too can see your wedding day.
  • Throw a party to celebrate. They weren’t there for the wedding, but there’s certainly no reason why they can’t celebrate it with you. Host a party so people can gather and congratulate you.
  • Send a marriage announcement wide and far. People would have known you were engaged and could be waiting for an invitation. Sure, it will come as a shock when they get an announcement instead, but it’s much nicer than finding out by word of mouth.
  • Ignore all the fuss. It was your choice and your wedding. There is no need for you to apologise for eloping, nor to feel any guilt about what you have done.

Once people find out about your elopement, and hopefully, it was from you, you can expect a lot of reactions, both good and bad. Being able to accept that people will feel the way they feel and that it’s not your responsibility to change that can help you through what could be a tricky time. We wish you the best of luck and love.