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5 Ways To Cure Your Sunday Night Anxiety
Feb
In an ideal world, you’d wake up Sunday morning and do absolutely nothing and love every second of it. I mean, even God himself rested on Sunday, why shouldn’t you?
At most, maybe you’d take your dog on a hike and hope to god no one tries to talk to you about the weather.
Then, depending on your mood, brunch with a few humans you can actually stand to be around. As the bottomless mimosas are in full swing, you suddenly don’t have a care in the world. The good life has arrived.
Feeling a little risky with the liquid courage, you may even hit on the server feeding you the goods. Why?
Because, Sunday.
Then, the delightful trance comes crashing down when your friend mentions chipper old Jan who sits in the cubicle next to them and how they’re dreading the week ahead.
Oh no, the time has come. The mimosas instantly wear off and the countdown to intense suffering has begun. Existential crisis creeps in as the good life fades away.
The panic is attacking you. You sprint home, draw the shades and curl up in your weighted blanket hoping Michael Scott will calm the storm.
Dragging on the inevitable doom, you clinch your pillow and stare at the ceiling because going to sleep will most certainly cause…
Monday.
‘Sunday Anxiety’ and I have become dear friends over the years. He catches the red-eye, swarms in, and torments me for an entire day – then flies home to hell.
What a quality relationship we have.
Unfortunately, I don’t have a quick fix for you on this one. Well, not unless you want to quit the world and move to a log cabin in the woods to live off the land. If that’s the case, send a postcard?
Sadly enough, hiding in the forest like the Unabomber wont solve your problems either. So, if you want to continue your pursuit to put a dent in the universe…
Here Are 5 Ways To Cure Your Sunday Night Anxiety
1. Start Monday On Friday
I know. This may seem ridiculous because when the bell rings at 5pm on Friday, you probably sprint out of the office like a 4th grader on recess. I get it.
While there’s a lot of well-intentioned advice telling us to plan for the week on Sunday nights – meal prep, tidy up, plot your to-do list, etc. – I’m not about it.
Though it’s all well and good, planning out everything you need to get done on Sunday will bring your weekend to a tragic end before it’s actually over. And where’s the fun in that?
So, why not move your weekly planning to Friday night before you check out and rage face all weekend (if that’s what you’re into).
Spend an hour mapping out the week and writing a to-do list for the second you walk in the door on Monday. You will feel a lot better about Monday knowing you can fully check out on Sunday.
And speaking of Monday…
2. Make Monday’s Great Again
No, I’m not a Donald supporter. The phrase just felt right (please don’t impeach me).
It’s a universal fact that Mondays suck.
So, let’s make them better.
There’s a lot of psychology telling us to get our toughest task out of the way first so the rest of the day is a breeze. I disagree.
When you create your to-do list Friday before you check out, put your 3-5 easiest tasks at the very top of the list.
Easing into Monday and getting these things accomplished early will make you feel a hell of a lot better. You won’t be stressed about how you’re going to solve that big problem Monday morning.
Get a few wins under your belt before you try to conquer the world first thing Monday. If you need some help goal setting or planning your life, shoot me an email and I’ll give you some pointers.
3. Be Present
Don’t bring work home with you.
This may be a cliche and not something you buy into because you’re a workaholic. And to that, I say, good for you. Can I be like you when I grow up?
For me, it’s important to be present. Sunday dread stems from anticipating the future and overwhelming yourself with the work you have to do.
While your work is equally important, Sunday is still the weekend. And still your day off. So, allow yourself to enjoy your freedom.
And while you’re at it…
4. Do Something You’ve Never Done Before
Don’t binge the weekend away…even if it’s Netflix.
Forget the guilt and go do something fun you’ve never done before. Yoga on the beach, Frisbee golf, paddleboard with that cute server, scale a mountain, write a mystery novel about your weird serial killer neighbor. Or you know, whatever.
Just go do it. Sitting in your thoughts and doing the same thing you always do will eat you alive. You gotta do something random to distract you from the mundane.
It’s called a brain reboot and it will ignite your creativity. And who knows, you may actually enjoy yourself.
5. Treat Yo’ Self
Look, if you want to drink yourself stupid all weekend, go right ahead. I get it – you had a tough week, you deserve it. Do you boo-boo.
But, if that’s what you choose to do, don’t complain Monday about how much you hate everything.
You need to balance yourself. Drink Friday night, recover Saturday, then take a self care Sunday…
The absolute worst thing you can do is end Sunday stressed out about all the bad decisions you made all weekend. Make a plan to treat yo’ self to something small Sunday night to reset, feel good, and get a peaceful sleep.
Get a massage, sit in the sauna, throw on a facemask, listen to your favorite songs, drink a hot tea, meditate, read, whatever. Just do something small that brings YOU joy and don’t let alcohol be that thing.
Do these things and chipper old Jan will wonder what the hell has gotten into you on this fine Monday morning…
And that, my friends, is a win.
That’s all I got for now. Keep fighting, friends ✌️