Who's afraid of the Sunday Scaries?

Is it normal to be low-key stressed about the workweek ahead?

Jan 14, 2025

Cranberry breaker near Hazleton PA — The phrase “back to the old salt mine” has been used since the 1800s to reference reluctantly returning to work. In the early 1900s, the phrase would have been (almost) literal for two of my great-grandfathers–they spent their six-day workweeks in the coal mines. I wonder if my great-granddads experienced the Sunday Scaries?

What are the Sunday Scaries?

I first heard the term Sunday Scaries a few years ago when I started following a 20-something influencer who’d written a book on adulting. I thought it was merely a clever name she came up with for her newsletter. Then somebody I knew used the term on an Instagram post, and I realized that the Sunday Scaries are a thing.

Since then, I’ve discovered several podcasts attempt to help address the condition. They prescribe varying remedies for dealing with anxiety related to the workweek ahead–some offer guided meditations to cope; others suggest retail therapy or scented candles or CBD may be the cure.

So what exactly are the Sunday Scaries? They are an unwelcome, anxious anticipation of the week ahead. Some describe it as a cloud of dread hanging over the beginning of the workweek. Symptoms may include a racing heartbeat, sweating, trembling, an upset stomach, a headache, or trouble sleeping.

How common are the Sunday Scaries? Precise stats aren’t available, but an American Academy of Sleep Medicine survey found that about a third of Gen Z (32%) and Millennials (34%) always, almost always, or often have a harder time falling asleep on Sunday nights compared with other nights of the week. That same survey found that 73% of Americans said they have lost sleep due to worries about work.

1920s-era man in his Sunday Best clothes standing in his backyard — Though you can’t tell from this picture where he’s dressed in his Sunday best, my great-grandfather was a coal miner–one of the most dangerous occupations you could have. I don’t know if he suffered from the Sunday Scaries, though you could see how he might have. He died in a mine accident when he was 52.

Are the Sunday Scaries a new affliction?

The term Sunday Scaries first appeared in the Urban Dictionary in 2009, but the condition existed long before then.

Though there wasn’t a name for it when I was a young adult, I remember suffering from an acute case during my senior year of college when it seemed like every day was a new hoop to jump through, a new trick of emerging adulthood to perform. Looking back, I was most prone to coming down with a case of the Sunday Scaries when I started a new job, when my job responsibilities changed, or something at work had me feeling more under pressure than usual.

I remember my grandmother sometimes remarking about me heading “back to the old salt mine” tomorrow if we visited her on a Sunday. (Though it’s a phrase that’s been used since the 1800s to reference reluctantly heading back to work, I suspect my grandmother might have heard her coal mining father use the phrase unironically.) It makes me think that the Sunday Scaries may have existed since humankind headed off to work.

Let’s face it–there’s no escaping that we all have to contend with the pressures associated with work.

Researching this piece got me thinking about what it was like back in the 1920s when work for both of my maternal great-grandfathers meant heading off to the coal mine every weekday plus Saturday. I can only imagine what their Sunday Scaries could have been like, given the life-threatening occupational hazards that came along with their line of work (one great-grandfather died when rocks fell on him as he was setting a support beam). Though I may suffer from performance-related anxieties related to my work in any given week, I’m not in grave peril.

I share these thoughts not to minimize any distress you might experience because of the Sunday Scaries but to provide a perspective. Everyone’s job tends to be stressful in one way or another; we all have days when we would rather be somewhere other than at work. My point is that you’re not alone in experiencing this very human condition.

1950s era man sitting in his kitchen in his workclothes with his nephew on his knee — Here’s my grandpop sitting in his kitchen with his nephew after a hard day’s work. Instead of working in the coal mines like his dad, he moved to the big city and became a truck driver. Perhaps he hoped to avoid severe Sunday Scaries by choosing a different line of work than his father.

What causes the Sunday Scaries?

Ideally, a weekend feels like a mini-vacation–you step away from your regular work responsibilities, have the chance to call your own shots as far as how you occupy your time, and hopefully have an opportunity to do some things purely because you enjoy them. Even if you spend part of your weekend tending to household chores, you’re the boss of you. So when it’s time to return to your work-oriented labors again, it’s natural to feel something of a letdown, just as you do when your vacation draws to a close.

When you’re in your 20s or 30s, I suspect you’re more prone to catching a case of the Sunday Scaries because managing work and all of its quirks isn’t a habit yet. Very few days or weeks are just like the ones that came before it yet–it’s one of the things that makes young adulthood an exciting ride. It’s also one of the things that can make it scary sometimes too. Especially if thrillers or suspense aren’t your favorite entertainment genre, you’re probably not too keen on that feeling of not knowing what’s ahead of you in any given week.

At the beginning of your career, you’re still working your way along the learning curve and building up your coping bag of tricks. It will likely get better once you have more experience under your belt. You’ll have more mental templates for what might transpire in any given week and some ideas about how you will handle what comes your way. In fact, once the world of work becomes more routine for you, you may find it’s less exciting but more secure and settled.

Be aware that you’re at greater risk of the Sunday Scaries if you’re working in a risky occupation or at a demanding job, doing work you dislike, or find your work unfulfilling. You’re also more likely to suffer from the Sunday Scaries if it’s hard to unplug from the daily grind, relax, and “re-create” yourself over the weekend.

1980s era man sitting in front of a drafting table at work — I never sensed that my father suffered from the Sunday Scaries as a kid. Although his job as a printer for a large manufacturing company didn’t seem stressful or dangerous, he too could have battled the Sunday Scaries at one point or another.

How can you prevent or alleviate the Sunday Scaries?

Get in the habit of making a general plan for the week ahead. You don’t need to have everything figured out, but having a general sense of what needs to be done and hopefully some things to look forward to will help you orient yourself.

They say that kids and pets love routines, but I believe most adults love routines too. Is there anything about your daily grind that you can automate so that you have fewer decisions to make–what you’ll have for breakfast, what you’re doing for lunch–and know what to expect when it comes to certain aspects of your day?

Remind yourself that when you first get to work on a Monday, it’s normal to feel at least a little overwhelmed about everything that needs to be done that week. Remember that you’ll begin to feel better as you start to make progress. And keep in mind that at the end of the day, all you can do is your best work. If you’re doing that, everything else tends to fall into place.

Remember that it’s perfectly normal to feel at least a little stressed about any high-stakes situations you may face in the coming week. If you’re giving a big presentation or meeting with a new client and aren’t sure how that will go, you might feel a little eustress–a positive stress that helps to motivate and focus as you face challenges or new experiences.

Finally, create a relaxing ritual or find a way to enjoy yourself on Sunday night. Whether it’s binge-watching a favorite show or reading a book, it’s better to unwind than tense up about the week ahead.

1990s era woman seated behind a desk at her office job — If my grandfather or great-grandfather had been alive to see me working at my office job, I imagine they would have found it laughable had I complained about suffering from the Sunday Scaries. That’s not to say that it wasn’t valid for me to be uptight or apprehensive about work sometimes. It’s just that Sunday Scaries are relative.

When do the Sunday Scaries require additional treatment?

Psychologists say that if feelings of unease or overwhelm routinely surface on Sundays like clockwork, chances are your anxiety is being driven by external factors rather than clinical depression or anxiety.

However, if the Sunday Scaries seem to morph into something more closely resembling dread, it’s time to dig deeper to identify the root cause.

Perhaps it is time to re-evaluate your employment situation. Ask yourself–Am I burned out? Is my workload unrealistic or unhealthy? Is my subconscious trying to tell me that I’m not in the right job for me?

And of course, if anxiety begins to interfere with your daily life–and those Sunday Scaries start to routinely intrude on the other days of the week–it would be wise to seek help–an evaluation from a professional may be in order.

None of us is immune from the Sunday Scaries, and you may not always be able to avoid them, but they shouldn’t dominate or detract from living and enjoying your life.

A few resources that may help with the Sunday Scaries

This Psychology Today article offers five concrete tips for overcoming the Sunday Scaries.

This Fast Company article delves deeper into what causes the Sunday Scaries and explores seven ways to beat them back. It also features a video (scroll down) that suggests four things you can do at work to help prevent the Sunday night blues.

If you suspect that the Sunday Scaries may be an indication that it’s time to re-evaluate your employment situation, this article has a Should I Quit My Job quiz to help you assess.

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