Today, I read about the concept of Sunday Scaries. It sounds like something related to Halloween, but unlike Halloween, it occurs 52 times more frequently per year and is far less enjoyable…
Sunday Scaries is when you experience anxiety on Sunday, anticipating that tomorrow will be Monday and you will have to go to work.
This feeling disturbs you to the extent that you cannot relax on Sundays, and you really don’t want Monday to arrive—if it means going to work.
It can look like this:
These blocks in your schedule can change. The important thing here is that whatever you do on Sunday, you find yourself repeatedly thinking about the upcoming Monday. Whether it’s a specific thought or just a general background anxiety, the focus remains on the future.
Does this sound familiar? It probably does, and the thing is, it is not OK. Most likely, it indicates that you don’t enjoy what you do, whatever the reason.
It doesn’t necessarily mean you dislike your job. It could simply be that you don’t want to interact with an annoying colleague or haven’t found enough time to take care of your personal needs. The fact is that this Sunday anxiety reflects an underlying problem that you might not see.
The good news is that once you identify it, you can ask yourself what it is exactly and why it triggers such a reaction from you. Starting from this point, you’ve already solved 50% of the problem, marking your halfway out. As the saying goes, naming the problem is half the solution.
The next step and the remaining 50% depend on what you discover about yourself or your situation.
Do you experience Scary Sundays? Do you know why? What plan do you have?
Ask yourself these questions and be honest when answering them. This will help you move closer to self-harmony and enhance the quality of not only your Sundays but also other days of the week.
“I hated Sundays as a kid. From the moment I woke up, I could feel Monday looming, could feel another school week all piled up and ready to smother me. How was I supposed to enjoy a day of freedom while drowning in dread like that? It was impossible. A pit would form in my chest and gut – this indescribably emptiness that I knew should be filled with fun, but instead left me casting about for something to do. Knowing I should be having fun was a huge part of the problem. knowing that this was a rare day off, a welcome reprieve, and here I was miserable and fighting against it. Maybe this was why Fridays at school were better than Sundays not in school. I was happier doing what I hated, knowing a Saturday was coming, than I was on a perfectly free Sunday with a Monday right around the corner.” ― Hugh Howey, Visitor