How to Relieve the Sunday Scaries (Sunday Blues)

What Are the Sunday Scaries?

The Sunday scaries involve feelings of sadness or anxiety at the end of the weekend. As their days off come to a close, they report feeling uncomfortable and stressful feelings. This feeling is quite normal, In fact, more than 30% of the workforce feels the Sunday scaries each week.¹

While not an official diagnosis recognized in healthcare, anticipatory anxiety regarding the week ahead is a real feeling many share.

Some symptoms of Sunday scaries may include:

• A racing heartbeat
• Sweating
• Upset stomach
• Anxious thoughts
• Irritable mood
• Difficulty sleeping
• Headache
• Lethargy
• Feeling of dread
• Trouble breathing

What Causes the Sunday Scaries?

Sunday Scaries are generally caused by what experts call ‘anticipatory anxiety,’ which is apprehension felt about an upcoming event due to the possibility of a negative outcome or adverse effects.¹ Additional factors, such as a stressful work environment, personal to-dos, or lack of work-life balance can also compound feelings of Sunday Scaries.

The Sunday scaries may be caused by:

• Work-related stress: Work stressors, such as a large number of work tasks or unsupportive colleagues, can contribute to general feelings of work-related stress. Anticipatory anxiety may worsen in situations where you feel unsupported or overworked.
• Unfulfilled expectations from the weekend: Weekends are generally the time when people feel conflict to both catch up on work tasks and fulfill personal to-dos. When personal to-dos were not fulfilled during the weekend, such as meal prepping or household chores, they can contribute to feeling burned out and disorganized during the work week.
• Fear of the unknown: Sunday scaries worsen because of “fear of the unknown” and what work tasks are looming in the week ahead. Studies indicate that unpredictability, uncertainty, and uncontrollability of events can all contribute to feelings of anticipatory anxiety.²
• Struggling to balance work and home: Lack of work-life balance can contribute to Sunday scaries when weekends are spent more on work to-dos than self-care. Job satisfaction plays a big role in feelings of work-life balance, which may also contribute to less feelings of anticipatory anxiety starting the work week.³
• Societal pressures: Societal pressures, such as the pressure to perform well at work, can contribute to feelings of not measuring up. Imposter syndrome can emerge when societal pressures lead to feelings of self-doubt, inadequacy, or failure.⁴
• Leaving too much unfinished business the week before: Knowing that you have a lot of work tasks to catch up on can leave you feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Sunday scaries can easily creep in during periods of emotional overwhelm about unfinished work tasks.

Are the Sunday Scaries Anxiety or Depression?

Even though the Sunday scaries are not an official diagnosis, they can often be symptoms of mental health conditions such as anxiety or depression. If you find that you are avoiding plans, skipping social obligations, or calling off from work on Mondays due to the level of your symptoms, it could be that your Sunday scaries are actually caused by anxiety, depression, or another mental health concern. Look for signs such as loss of sleep, changes in appetite, or other symptoms making life difficult to manage.

How to Avoid the Sunday Blues

You don’t have to accept the Sunday blues as a regular part of your weekend. There are things you do to relieve or even eliminate the feelings associated with the end of your weekend. Setting weekly plans, finding things to look forward to, and practicing self-care are all important for decreasing these uncomfortable feelings.

Try some of these 21 tips to avoid the Sunday scaries:

1. Figure Out the Cause of the Scaries

Figuring out the triggers for your Sunday scaries can help you develop a plan to deal with them. You can start by thinking about the people, environments, or situations that make your Sunday scaries more likely to creep in. Once you have identified triggers, you can review any patterns to start narrowing down whether you want to minimize triggers, or change the way you might be coping with them.

2. Prepare for the Week

Preparing for the week ahead can help relieve the negative feelings of returning to work or school. Look at any projects or assignments due this week, along with plans and other things on your to-do list. Mentally preparing for the coming days can empower you to face the Sunday scaries better.

3. Find Something to Look Forward to on Monday

If you have something to look forward to the next day, it can make starting the week much easier. Grabbing a coffee to go at your favorite coffee shop or a quick breakfast sandwich on your drive to work, or scheduling a yoga class for after work can make Monday mornings seem more bearable.

4. Plan Your Weekend

What better way to tackle the uncomfortable feelings about the weekend ending than to plan for the following weekend? Take some time to plan out your upcoming weekend. There may be a movie you want to see or a new restaurant you want to try.

5. Acknowledge & Explore Your Feelings

Trying to push away any uncomfortable or scary feelings doesn’t help. Acknowledging how you feel is an important part of managing them. Studies have shown the health benefits of accepting negative feelings or emotions.⁵

Research has shown that those who try to suppress or push away negative feelings or sensations find that their symptoms can worsen. In a 2006 study, researchers found that those who tried to suppress their feelings experienced more symptoms, such as increased heart rate, than those who did not suppress them.⁶

6. Practice More Self-Care on Sundays

Self-care should be an essential part of your days off. Practicing more self-care can help reduce the stress and other negative feelings associated with Sunday Scaries. Take time for a hot bath, a solo hike, or get a pedicure. Feeling better about yourself can help you manage the feelings you may experience the night before returning to work.

7. Examine Your Work Life

Many people get the Sunday blues when they are experiencing burnout from work. Dreading going into the office is sometimes a sign that you need a break. For some, this could simply mean they need a vacation or a long weekend. For others, burnout could be one of the signs of a toxic work environment.

8. Create an End-to-the-Weekend Ritual

Having a Sunday evening routine can make the inevitable ending of the weekend more bearable. Many couples have a weekly show they watch together or a weekly date night. Saving these things for Sundays might make the night before the return to work something to look forward to.

9. Talk to Someone

Having a conversation about what you are feeling can help. If you live with a partner or roommate, be honest about what you are going through. Often we find that others have similar experiences, but it is not talked about due to shame or embarrassment. Talking with someone can help you validate yourself and can even help you find ways to combat the feelings.

10. Get Physical

Exercising can help improve mood and avoid symptoms of Sunday scaries. Exercise has been shown to help decrease anxiety and other mental health symptoms.⁷ Taking time to exercise on the weekend (and throughout the week) can help reduce the negative feelings experienced as you plan to return to work.

11. Avoid Working on Your Days Off

The weekends should be for resting and rejuvenating. You must take a complete break from work to relax your mind entirely. Turn on do-not-disturb on your work phone and computer, avoid responding to texts and emails, and allow yourself a break for the whole weekend. This will help prevent the Sunday blues associated with returning to work when you haven’t had the break you needed.

12. Be Mindful of Negative Self-Talk

The ways we speak to and about ourselves have a strong impact on our mood and mental health.⁸ Being mindful of how you are talking to and about yourself can help manage stressful feelings associated with Sunday blues. If you find yourself saying negative things to yourself about work, your job performance, or other things that contribute to the Sunday scaries, redirect your thoughts and speech to saying positive—or even neutral—things about yourself and your job instead.

13. Stick to Your Sleep Schedule & Avoid Bedtime Procrastination

Sometimes people avoid going to bed until much later than intended on their last night off. This usually happens when attempting to prolong their time off, almost as if going to bed normally will make Monday morning come earlier. If you find you are putting off going to bed, you could be engaging in revenge bedtime procrastination. Studies show that insufficient sleep can negatively affect mood and mental health.⁹ Therefore, putting off sleep can make the feelings associated with Sunday Scaries—and Monday morning slumps—much worse!

14. Practice Self-Compassion

Practicing self-compassion can help you approach dealing with the Sunday scaries from a place of healthy self-prioritization. Since Sunday blues can often arise from feelings of prioritizing work over self, practicing self-compassion can help you learn what it might be like to prioritize your well-being over work tasks. Strategies for self-compassion might include affirmations, loving-kindness meditation, or simply weaving breaks into your work days.

15. Spend Time With a Friend on Sundays

Spending time with friends can provide emotional support, improve mood, and widen your perspective about what is important in life. Taking the time on a Sunday, or whatever day before your work week begins, can help you re-focus on relationships as a life priority. This may make your work week more approachable as you took the time to engage in an activity that lessened your stress over the weekend.

16. Try a Digital Detox on the Weekends

Using a digital detox on the weekend can help you disconnect from constant stimulation. Whether it is work emails, texts from friends, or notifications from your favorite stores, never-ending connection can lead to feelings of stress and cognitive overload.¹⁰ Taking a break from social media and technology through digital detox gives you the opportunity to avoid information overload and give your working memory a break from constant input.¹⁰

Feeling overloaded with information can lead to confusion, loss of control, psychological stress, and even an increase in depressive symptoms.¹⁰ If you notice social media and technology are contributing to your feelings of overwhelm and Sunday scaries, taking a break on the weekend can give you the space you need to feel recharged for your work week.

17. Start a Gratitude Practice

Gratitude can help generate a positive perspective for the world around you. Gratitude practices such as gratitude journaling, loving-kindness meditations, or even simple acts of gratitude toward self or others can help produce feelings of kindness and generosity. Sunday scaries tend to thrive in situations where a person feels ungrateful and unappreciated, so using gratitude practices is a way to ward off negative emotions.

18. Leave Breathing Room During the Week

Sometimes Sunday scaries are compounded by thinking ahead to a lack of breaks in the work week. By scheduling breaks for yourself during your work week, you can avoid the negative feelings generated by looking at a calendar filled only with meetings and projects. Scheduling breaks on a shared calendar can also draw work boundaries for your colleagues to understand your professional needs.

19. Try Not to Multitask on the Weekends

Multitasking on the weekends, such as fulfilling both personal and professional commitments, can leave you feeling conflicted about work-life boundaries. Try to use weekends just for personal priorities and weekdays mostly for professional responsibilities. This gives your brain a chance to avoid too many mental transitions if you try to multitask on the weekends, as well as avoiding conditions which could create burnout.

20. Get Chores Out of the Way Early in the Day

Any errands you must run or household tasks you must complete should be done as soon as possible to help free up your Sunday afternoon instead of having chores or other things on your to-do list looming over your head.

21. Create a Monday Morning Playlist

Do you have a podcast you have been wanting to listen to? Download it and queue it up for the morning drive-in or to have it at your desk as you work. Having something to help pass the time will make Monday seem like it’s not that bad.

What to Do In the Moment When You’ve Got the Sunday Scaries

Sometimes Sunday scaries happen, even when you have taken the necessary precautions. There are several activities you can use in the present moment to calm your body and mind if Sunday Scaries start to creep in, like journaling, doing some breathwork, going on a walk, or intentionally listening to calming music. Some activities encourage mind-body connection, while others focus on seeking support or using positive coping mechanisms.

Here are some activities to try if you’ve got the Sunday scaries:

• Take several deep breaths: Deep breathing can help with mind-body connection, calming an anxious body and mind from thoughts focused on the work week ahead. You can pair deep breathing with a guided meditation to help draw your mind away from Sunday Scaries.
• Get creative: Creative projects are a great way to provide distraction from the Sunday scaries. Whether you are interested in art, music, or creative movement like dance, creativity is one way to positively shift your perspective away from thinking about work.
• Move your body: Movement is one way to decrease anxiety and other mental health symptoms.⁷ Finding a form of movement you enjoy can help you develop a routine for warding off the Sunday scaries.
• Listen to calming music: Calming music is a positive coping mechanism to help shift your mood and improve your mindset for the work week ahead. Try incorporating calming music into a Sunday nighttime routine to help reset your mind for restful sleep before the work week.
• Try journaling: Journaling about your Sunday scaries is one way to process where these feelings are coming from. Guided journaling about other topics, like gratitude, is another way to shift your mindset away from negative emotions and thoughts related to the work week ahead.
• Do a quick mindfulness exercise: Mindfulness draws attention to the present moment in a nonjudgmental manner. Using a mindfulness exercise is one way to engage your senses in a pleasant experience and draw upon gratitude for the present moment.
• Connect with a loved one: Sunday scaries may be easier to cope with when you are not alone. Calling, texting, or meeting a friend in person are ways to get support around your anxious feelings and thoughts about the work week ahead.

When Should You Get Help for Your Sunday Scaries

While occasionally experiencing some of the Sunday blues is likely normal, if you find that your symptoms and the anticipatory anxiety affect your ability to focus on work or family obligations, it might be more than just some Sunday scaries.

If these symptoms are causing problems with sleep and eating habits, or if you find yourself avoiding plans or calling off work on Mondays, it might be a sign of a deeper issue such as depression, anxiety, or even symptoms of post-traumatic stress.

Where to Find Professional Help for Anxiety or Depression

If you find these feelings becoming unmanageable, such as affecting your work, sleep, or relationships, it might be time to find a therapist. It is easier than ever to find support for worry, dread, or anxiety symptoms. Look for an online therapist directory or online therapy platform for a therapist. It is even possible to find options for therapy online that accept insurance.