<prompt> Human: So as the title suggests Im struggling pretty badly this wedding season as I have a couple to attend and just wrapped up a wedding where I was in the bridal party. This was my first time being in a bridal party and over the last year it cost me probably 2 grand between travel, dress, hair, makeup, shower, bachelorette party etc. I tried my best to budget for it but now I have a couple more weddings coming up and between hotel stays, the gift, Bach partys, showers etc Im looking at another sizable amount and its really starting to get anxiety producing. I honestly think the cost attendees are expected to spend is absurd and Im really not prepared to continue spending this much, hoping to develop some sort of game plan to minimize the financial damage! This is the first year its really picked up for me in terms of weddings but the way things are trending and from what friends and coworkers say I shouldnt expect it to slow down anytime soon. And before anyone says its nothing to attend compared to holding one yes thats true but personally I plan to elope and do not believe in this huge expense for one day so fundamentally its even harder for me to comprehend.Do you all have any tips for navigating wedding season or this period of life where the weddings start to stack up? I truly do not want to spend this money yet I dont feel I can say no to them all without damaging relationships as people are so incredibly sensitive about their weddings and its not considered acceptable to decline without some significant reason so I really need to figure out a way to satisfy both as best as possible. Please share anything that has worked for you, Im eager to stop the financial bleeding from this!!Assistant: Tell them you cant afford to attend and have other financial responsibilities. Human: I have wanted to try this but wasnt sure it would go over well, have you tried this before to okay response?  <response>: Its going to depend on your friends, but honestly, this is a great point in your life to weed out the people who arent worth being friends with. You arent supposed to still know everybody you grew up with - and youre certainly not supposed to go to all of their weddings. 