How to Overcome the Sunday Night Blues

Preparing for Monday on Friday

Make Friday afternoon your new Monday morning. Friday afternoon, when you're excited about the weekend, is the perfect time to take care of all the annoying little work tasks that will otherwise await you on Monday. Get yourself organized so that you can enjoy the weekend instead of worrying about the work week to come.

Clean out your email and organize your space. Don't let unanswered emails hang over your head. Spend the last part of your day on Friday answering all your emails and cleaning out your inbox so that you can start fresh on Monday. And don't leave your office a mess, either. A neat, organized workspace is a place you will be happier to return to after the weekend. Be sure to acknowledge receipt of emails. A simple "Thanks" or "Got it" is usually all it takes. It let's the sender know that they don't need to do anything else and can check this task off their list. If you do it, those you correspond with will, too. If you don't have time to get to all your emails, mark as "unread" the important ones. This will remove the worry that they will get lost in the clutter by making them easy to locate and respond to.

Reflect on what you have accomplished that week. Leaving work with a sense of accomplishment – instead of focusing on what you still have to do – can make a huge difference in your sense of well-being. Review the goals you set for the week and cross off those that you have accomplished.

Write out your goals and a to-do list for the week to come. If there is something you didn't accomplish this week, writing out a to-do list detailing how and when you will take care of it next week is a great way to get it off your mind. You should also make a list of 3 to 5 new goals you want to accomplish at work in the week to come, and a to-do list indicating how they will be accomplished.

Plan downtime. If you haven't already, use Friday afternoon to make plans for the weekend. And make plans for the following week, as well. It's especially helpful to plan something for Monday. The sense of anticipation can help overcome the Sunday Night Blues.

Set limits on your work availability over the weekend. Let your coworkers know when you will be available to work. If you don't, you'll likely be asked to work, and more often than not, that work will get pushed to Sunday night. Telling them you'll be doing no work after noon on Sunday is a great way to prevent Sunday evening from becoming too stressful.

Say good-bye to your co-workers and thank them. Let your coworkers know you appreciate any help they gave you during the week. If any tensions flared up, try to resolve them as best you can. Relationships are a huge part of what makes a workplace enjoyable or uncomfortable. By making sure you leave your co-workers on a high note, you can avoid the stress of worrying about seeing them on Monday.

Making the Most of Sunday

Do your hardest weekend chores first. Waiting until the last moment to do weekend chores like paying bills, planning meals, shopping, doing laundry, or balancing your budget can leave you harried and stressed on Sunday. Instead, tackle the most annoying tasks on Saturday morning, when you'll have more energy and be in a better mood. And if you don't get though your entire to-do list that weekend, don't sweat it. Simply set aside some time to finish the tasks during the week or next weekend.

Plan a fun activity for Sunday evening. You're more likely to worry about Monday if you're not doing anything. Instead, start a fun weekly ritual that makes Sunday evening something to look forward to. Make Sunday night date night. Go to a movie or make it movie night. Have a dinner picnic. Watch your favorite TV show. Invite people over for dinner. Do a volunteer activity. Cook a fancy dinner. Have a game night.

Exercise. Aerobic exercise, in particular, has been clinically proven to reduce levels of anxiety and depression. Exercising on Sunday will help produce endorphins that can combat the Sunday Night Blues. It will also give you a sense of accomplishment and help you to sleep that night. Just remember to start slow and not overdo it at first. Some particularly good exercises to help you relax and get those endorphins pumping include: Walking or jogging for at least 10 minutes Yoga Tai Chi or Qi Gong (meditative martial arts developed in China) Dance Biking

Avoid alcohol. While alcohol may seem like a good way to fight the blues, it's a depressant that's only going to make you feel worse. Drinking on Sunday will also make Monday harder, only reinforcing your Sunday fears. Instead, eat a healthy dinner on Sunday night. Try a warm cup of tea or some bubbly water instead.

Unplug your devices. Turn off your cell phone and do not check your work email. It may be tempting to get a head start on the week by doing work on Sunday, but that can be counterproductive. Doing work on Sunday can cause you anxiety and stress, and not getting enough down time can actually cause you to be less productive. Taking time to recharge your batteries, on the other hand, can make you a happier, more productive worker. Those work emails can wait until Monday. If you must, give yourself no more than 30 minutes on Sunday to write out your work to-do list and organize your calendar. Writing things down will allow you to put those tasks out of your head, stop worrying about work, and will make space for you to think about relaxing.

Relax before bed. While keeping busy is a good way to keep your mind off the blues, you'll want to start relaxing and winding down by 8pm so that you can recharge and get ready for Monday. Try creating a soothing Sunday night ritual that you can look forward to. And be sure to keep work-related items out of the bedroom so that you can relax properly. Some activities to try include: Take a hot bath with salts or bubbles. Read a good book. Meditate. Do yoga. Listen to calming music. Give yourself a mani-pedi. Take an evening walk. Watch the sun set.

Giving Yourself Something to Look Forward to on Monday

Wear your favorite clothes. Studies show that what you wear can have a significant effect on your mood. So make Monday the day you wear your favorite clothes or unveil the latest addition to your wardrobe.

Make your commute fun. A tough commute can be a big source of stress and contribute to the Sunday Night Blues. So especially on Monday, work on making your commute fun. Leave early so that you can stop and get your favorite coffee. Or visit a diner where you can eat while you sort work email and prepare for the week. If you don't want to stop, try getting a book on tape (you can check them out digitally from most public libraries for free). It will give you something to look forward to on your commute.

Make lunch an event. Monday is not the day to have a salad at your desk. Give yourself something to look forward to by treating yourself to a nice lunch. Take a co-worker if you can. Making personal connections at work will help make the workplace less stressful.

Plan a fun activity for after work. Fun is not just for the weekends. Having something to look forward to on Monday night can go a long way to dispelling the Sunday Night blues. Go to a happy hour, out on a date, or to a movie or concert. Or have a quite night at home watching your favorite show, if that's more your speed. If you have kids, head out for dinner, make Monday night pizza night or game night, or hire a babysitter and make it date night.

Understanding Your Blues

Confront your feelings. Recognizing that you have the Sunday Blues and what they stem from can go a long way to helping you work through them. Keep a log of specific actions, tasks, or times of days that trigger your blues. Write down exactly what you feel, what time it is, and why you think you feel that way. After a few weeks, look for patterns in your log to see what is causing your blues. Ask yourself what you're really dreading. Acknowledging those feelings—without judging yourself for them—is the first step toward overcoming them. If your Sunday blues come from leaving unpleasant tasks for the week ahead until Sunday night to complete, then you can help yourself feel better by changing your weekend and work routine. If your Sunday blues stem from anxiety about an upcoming presentation or assignment due on Monday, allow yourself to acknowledge your nervousness as normal, and then tell yourself that Monday will go well. Set aside prep time that weekend to make sure you are prepared. If your Sunday blues stem from your job, and none of the steps you take to address them work, then it may be time to look for new employment. Schedule a little time on Sunday's to update your resume and search for work. Taking positive steps forward will help you cope with returning to your job the next day.

Make Sunday just another day. If you think of Friday as the end of the week, you'll be anxious about what you haven't gotten done. Similarly, if you think of Sunday as the end of the weekend, you'll worry that you haven't maximized your time. But these days aren't ends. They are a part of an unending procession of days and nights, each one a part of a larger process. If you don't finish what you hoped to on Sunday, that's fine. You have the next week to do it. So instead of creating artificial units of time, separate from the rest of life, during which certain tasks have to be accomplished, try to weave those tasks into the overall fabric of your life. If Sunday evening is approaching and you still have tasks to accomplish, don't try to cram them in that night. Instead, make a to-do list of how you will accomplish them during the week to come. Space out fun activities. Trying to cram all your fun into the weekend can be more stressful than enjoyable. Be sure to space out fun activities over the course of the week. That way you won't be disappointed if your weekend isn't as fantastic as you hoped.

Get professional counseling. If after adjusting your weekend routine, organizing your Fridays, and trying to make Monday a fun day, you still suffer from the Sunday Night Blues, it is time to get professional guidance to help you explore the deeper causes of your negative feelings. They might stem from experiences earlier in your life, such as fearing school on Mondays because you were bullied or had a learning disorder. Or they might reflect unease with the type of work you do. A professional counselor can help you talk through and, hopefully, resolve your negative feelings.