It’s Sunday evening, you start to feel tiny flutters in your stomach, your heart begins to race, and your mind begins to spin. With the weekend wrapping up, you suddenly feel a sense of impending doom as the week ahead looms in the shadows. Whether it be pondering endless to-do lists, an upcoming presentation or something you can’t quite pinpoint, these feelings are extremely common. What you are experiencing is often referred to as the Sunday scaries. So, today, let’s talk about what this term means, its impact on your well-being, and offer some helpful strategies to help make Monday, and the week that follows, a little less terrifying.
Feeling the Sunday Scaries?
Experiencing anticipatory anxiety, what we call the Sunday scaries or the Sunday Blues, as the weekend ends is very common among professionals. A LinkedIn survey indicates that approximately 80% of workers, particularly younger individuals, report feelings of dread concerning the return to emails, meetings, and work responsibilities.
Some signs and symptoms may include:
- A racing heartbeat
- Sweating
- Difficulty breathing
- Trembling
- Upset stomach
- Trouble sleeping
- Headache
Ongoing feelings of stress and anxiety can lead to issues with depression, and even health related problems such as heart attacks. It has been reported that more heart attacks occur on Sundays and Mondays than any other day of the week.
With weekends often being much lower key, it’s not surprising that returning to the hustle and bustle of a busy work week leads to feelings of stress, overwhelm and nervousness.
“The transition from weekend relaxation to work mode can be a tough 180-degree turn…In that way, Sunday scaries are a normal reaction to adjusting to a different role and change.” –Cleveland Clinic
The good news? There are strategies you can consider, which can help combat the Sunday scaries.
Tips to Tame the Scaries
Create a relaxing Sunday: to help mitigate feelings of stress and overwhelm, plan something calming, especially on Sunday evening. Whether that be a warm bath, journalling, or watching a movie with your family, explore what helps distract and relax your mind and body.
Stay positive: it’s easy to fall into a routine of speaking negatively about the week ahead, which can impact your mental health. Therefore, rather than thinking about how awful the week is going to be, tell yourself it’s going to be a productive week. Consider the things ahead that you are looking forward to and focus your energy on those tasks, people, or activities.
Make a plan: before your day ends on Friday, make a list of priorities for Monday. This way, you will be organized and ready to tackle these tasks at the start of the week. Additionally, if there’s something on your mind that will nag you all weekend if left unfinished, consider putting in a little extra effort during the week so you can truly relax and enjoy your time off.
Treat yourself: who doesn’t like a little reward? Plan something special for Monday that will help make easing back into the week more bearable. Perhaps it’s a special trip to your favourite coffee shop, ordering take-out so you don’t have to cook, or meeting up with a friend after work. Whatever it is, having something to look forward to will help.
Ask for help or support: knowing when to reach out is key. If you are finding that your Sunday scaries are manifesting into deeper issues, it might be time to seek the advice of a medical professional. Furthermore, if your job is causing you increased stress or anxiety, speak to your boss or manager. If that’s not an option, you might need to consider other career options.
It’s important to remember that what benefits one individual may not suit another. Therefore, assess your own needs and explore ways to fulfill them, all while working to alleviate those Sunday scaries. Whatever that looks like, make sure to incorporate those elements into your Sunday routine, so you can kick off the week feeling rejuvenated and prepared for what lies ahead.
