How to Cope with the Sunday Scaries

It’s Sunday night, and you’re feeling sad and anxious about going back to work in the morning. Say hello to the Sunday scaries.

You’re not alone in your workweek dread: “They’re very, very common,” says Susanne Cooperman, a neuropsychologist and psychoanalyst at New York University Langone Huntington Medical Group. “There’s nothing wrong with a person if they feel sad that the weekend is over. It’s when it really interferes in your functioning—when you can’t focus, when you can’t sleep, when you feel yourself medicating with alcohol—then you need help.”

Here’s why people get the Sunday scaries and the best ways to combat those thoughts of doom and gloom.

What are the Sunday scaries?

The Sunday scaries typically manifest in two ways: feelings of depression that the weekend is ending, feelings of anxiety about the week to come, or both. These feelings typically start on Sunday afternoon.

“It could be that you feel sad and irritable and you have difficulty concentrating and fatigue,” Cooperman says. That collection of feelings is called anhedonia—basically a loss of enjoyment. If you feel more dread for the work week ahead, that’s called “anticipatory anxiety,” she says.

Why people get them

The scaries strike for all kinds of reasons. They could be related to work—maybe you’re afraid of losing your job, or you’re dreading going to the office in person, or you’re simply having a hard time unplugging from work after hours, Cooperman says.

Read More: 8 Symptoms Doctors Often Dismiss As Anxiety

Or, she adds, it could also be that you overbooked yourself during the week and feel exhausted by the time Sunday comes around.

How to deal with the Sunday scaries

One of the best ways to deal with the Sunday scaries is to mentally plant yourself firmly in the present. One way to achieve this is to try a mediation or relaxation app, even if it’s only for 10 or 15 minutes, Cooperman says.

“I think that’s probably the best out of all the tips: stay in the moment, really try to curtail that catastrophizing into the future,” she says.

There are other paths away from the scaries, too: Unplug from your phone or social media, maintain a good work-life balance, do some exercise, or get some fresh air. Make sure to schedule fun activities for Sunday afternoon and evening and do things that reliably make you feel better or help you “refuel [your] batteries,” Cooperman says. Just as important is allowing yourself downtime to relax and unwind, she adds. 

She also recommends trying to split up errands throughout the week so you don’t feel like you wasted your entire Sunday doing them.

While the Sunday scaries are common, people should keep an eye on how they’re coping come the end of the weekend. “Use healthy, adaptive ways to self-soothe when you’re anxious and have the scaries,” Cooperman says. “A glass of wine is fine, but if it’s more than that and you need it every night, then that’s a problem.”

Read More: How to Relax and Unwind Without Drinking Alcohol

If the scaries are so bad that it’s significantly impacting your life, Cooperman suggests talking about these feelings with a therapist or a psychologist. Some warning signs include being so anxious that it’s hard to get out of bed in the morning, having anxiety attacks, needing alcohol to calm down, not being able to focus or sleep, or failing to enjoy the weekend at all.

“If you just can’t get out of that loop where you’re constantly unhappy, then I think you’re at a place where you should see a psychologist or a therapist,” Cooperman says. “Sometimes it’s hard to [deal with it] on your own. It’s good to talk to a professional.”