The Sunday Scaries - What Are They and How To Overcome Them
Do you often experience feelings of anxiety and impending worry as the weekend comes to a close and you start looking towards Monday?
If so, you’re not alone, research has found that the ‘Sunday Scaries’ are a REAL thing experienced by approximately 80% of professionals who report that it peaks at 5 pm on a Sunday! Unsurprisingly, the groups affected most by anticipatory anxiety for the week ahead are millennials and Gen Z.
If you find yourself feeling stressed about the weekend ‘running out’, or overwhelmed by your to-do list and tasks that haven’t been completed yet, then this article is for you.
We have pulled together a simple 5 step routine, influenced by the session work we do with our 1:1 clients who present with these fears, to help you overcome the Sunday Scaries and head into the new week feeling optimistic, prepared, and positive about what is to come.
Step 1
Awareness is always the starting point when we are creating change. Pay attention to when you find those anxious thoughts creeping in, asking yourself, what am I thinking? How are these thoughts making me feel? Am I focussing on things that haven’t happened yet? Am I imagining the worst here?
When we have anxious thoughts and physically feel the anxiety building in our body it can often trigger our fight or flight response. Nothing has happened yet, but the thoughts we are focussing on (e.g not being able to cope with all there is to do tomorrow), makes us feel as though we are already living out that situation, even though we are at home, on a tranquil Sunday afternoon.
So once you have identified that there is worry around the week ahead, you can take the steps below to help you to create distance from these thoughts and soothe yourself back into the present.
Step 2
Create a Sunday evening that you look forward to. Showing ourselves compassion through self-care is essential in nurturing the relationships we have with ourselves.
By welcoming Sunday evening as a time you're looking forward to as opposed to dreading, you can start to replace those feelings of worry and anxiety, with feelings of excitement and gratitude for your weekly Sunday rituals.
As part of our collaboration with the wonderful Sunday Luxe, we will be sharing how you can incorporate two of our favourite products from their collection into your Sunday routine;
Lighting a candle, kept especially for Sundays!
Scent and memory are closely aligned, having a fragrance that over time your mind directly links to feelings of positive anticipation and relaxation will help you to recode your subconscious understanding of what Sunday evening feels like, and the physiological response you have towards it.
The Sunday Luxe 02 Mood candle is infused with rose and lavender essential oils, the perfect scent to aid mindfulness and promote relaxation.
Stepping into beautiful loungewear
Although not exclusively reserved for Sunday evenings…(we are the first out on a crisp morning walk in our cashmere-blend two-piece and oat latte in hand!) , having a set of luxurious loungewear that you reserve for Sunday evening and pair with feelings of ease and comfort will help to signal to the brain that you associate these positive thoughts with your environment. Over time you can rewrite the relationship you have with specific times of day and days of the week through this positive association.
Step 3
Declutter your mind by planning out the week ahead. Holding your to-do list in your mind can lead to overwhelm and feeling like you’re not in control.
Rather than avoiding it, spending just 10 minutes on a Sunday mapping out the week ahead with work events, social commitments and simple daily tasks that need to be completed will leave you feeling like you have a clear strategy for the week ahead.
Step 4
We are conditioned to think that Monday is the worst day of the week which can make the Sunday Scaries feel justified and somewhat unavoidable. You can reclaim this power by changing the story around Mondays for yourself.
Is there a new, enjoyable ritual you can do for yourself every Monday? Maybe this is the day you treat yourself to a coffee on your way to the office, or book your favourite gym class for after work. Whatever helps to give Monday a little more magic.
Step 5
Bring in some positive energy for the week ahead. To summon those good vibes you can set a clear intention for the week ahead by visualising how you want to feel on Friday. Your mind loves being primed to focus its attention on something so this is a perfect time to choose an encouraging mantra for the week that you can hold onto.
Not sure where to start with mantras, download our mini-collection here, perfect to set as your screensaver every Sunday to keep you on track and feeling supported!
“Sunday Scaries” are very real worries. The nature of worry is it is future-focused thoughts and therefore we often find ourselves imagining the worst hypothetical situations. Our mind is set to pay attention to perceived problems, so if your mind is full of awful thoughts about Monday not only are you going to feel anxious, you are likely to stay anxious because it’s difficult to solve something that hasn’t (and might not) happen yet. Overriding, worrisome thoughts can be tough because of how our brain works, the steps above aim to reduce attention on hypothetical thoughts & images whilst also soothing your nervous system.
Give yourself chance to practice imperfectly, trying to reduce pressure to “get it right”, remind yourself that even 15 minutes less spent anxious on a Sunday is 15 minutes reclaimed and could make a positive difference to your week.
- Resident Psychological Coach Rachael Adams
We are thrilled to be collaborating with the team at Sunday Luxe.
Founders Jen and Zoe met 7 years ago whilst both working in advertising. Shared values including self-development, ambition, and entrepreneurship cemented the friendship.
When the opportunity to go into business together came in 2020, they jumped in with both feet.
Sunday Luxe was born out of their love of loungewear and identifying a gap in the market for quality knitwear that would last for decades with the right care.
Through mutual clients, The LSP and Sunday Luxe connected and we soon realised we could create joint value for our audiences around one of our shared pillars, personal relationships, and in particular the relationship you have with yourself.
It became clear that we both, through different mediums, are offering our clients methods and techniques to help romanticise and elevate their day-to-day lives. Encouraging you to strive to achieve what you previously felt was out of reach.
Ultimately, we want to continue to connect with and serve strong women who demand more from their lives.
In celebration of our collaboration, Sunday Luxe has generously offered a discount code LSP10 that can be used across their full collection
We hope you've enjoyed this month’s LSP Journal entry and that you are looking forward to incorporating these methods into your upcoming weekend.