Impending doom. Nervous sweats. Anxious shaking. These are all true signs and symptoms that you are struggling with a very real illness: Sunday Scaries. It’s the silent killer of good vibes. We all suffer from it, and if you think you don’t, you’re probably wrong.
It starts creeping up on you in the middle of Saturday night. You’ve just spent a great day relaxing, hanging out with friends and doing something fun. When your head hits the pillow at the end of the night, you think that all is well. That’s when it hits you. It might be that terrifying recurring dream of you walking into your favorite class and suddenly realize that you never clicked submit on your essay due at 11:59 p.m.. Or maybe you wake up in the middle of the night because a to-do list begins to generate in your head, gnawing at you to the point where you can’t sleep unless you write down every last thing. It could be a multitude of things—Sunday Scaries come in all shapes and forms.
Yet those are just the pre-symptoms. You only just started with maybe a bad dream or a rough night of sleep, but it progresses. When you wake up, things appear fine—you get breakfast and lounge in comfortable clothes. Though noon quickly approaches (you slept in till 11:00 a.m.), and things begin to feel not quite right; the Saturday high is gone, endorphins from the Dhall tater tots have sadly worn off. From this point on, a knot in your stomach grows. You can’t listen to your fun silly pop music anymore (goodbye Chappell Roan) but instead your sad indie playlist Spotify created for you (hello Boygenius) and all senses of motivation have completely gone down the drain. There is when you reach the bewitching hour, also known as 3:58 p.m., and that is when you experience the full symptoms of Sunday Scaries.
From here on out, you most likely endure a feeling of dread and doom and an utmost desire to not go to your Monday classes, or any of your classes, for that matter. You scramble to finish your readings, type incredibly quickly to get done those essays and stare at your screen until your math problems just hopefully solve themselves. It’s all just a blur from this point, a mass chaos of “oh my gosh I need to get my work done” and “oh my gosh I really don’t want to get my work done” until you reach the night and reluctantly go to bed. And the cycle continues next weekend.
In all seriousness though, now that we’re back at school, most of us have felt that hit of dread when Sunday rolls around, and it’s not an uncommon feeling. It is somewhat logical in a sense that around Sunday afternoon some of us begin to feel anxious as we anticipate our approaching school week. We look at all the work we somehow have to finish by the next day, and then the work we will be flooded with in the school week, and immediately become overwhelmed. Though perhaps there are things that can make Sundays not as scary as they can feel, so we start off on the right foot this semester. As an avid Sunday Scaries sufferer, I am certainly not here to lecture on how to magically make the anxious feelings go away, but I have learned through my suffering some ways to make the impending doom not so doomful.
For starters, trying not to wait until Sunday to do all of your work might be helpful. Perhaps doing a bit of work on Thursday, then Friday, maybe even just a tad on Saturday, can take the heavy load off of Sunday so you aren’t feeling too overwhelmed. I also like to write down each thing I have to do so that my brain isn’t flooded with random reminders of what needs to be done soon. Sundays shouldn’t only be about work though, I find it nice to take time to myself in order to calm down any nerves. Cleaning my room a bit clears my mind, and doing my laundry can help me feel productive. Taking a nice shower and doing some simple self-care steps like a face mask or journaling can be nice as well. Eating a good meal or maybe a comfort food can bring some peace and relief to the mind. Even things like scrolling on Pinterest and watching a favorite show or movie can make a difference. Doing things that make you calm and happy is important, especially on days as scary as Sunday. So when the next dreaded Sunday comes along, perhaps incorporate something relaxing and comforting into your routine. It can be some of the things I do, or something you know will keep you calm. You’ll probably still get the Sunday Scaries, but hopefully they won’t be as scary as before.
(This article was actually written on a Saturday, not a Sunday. The author is practicing what she preaches!)
Emily Nally ‘27 is an English and creative writing major with a minor in English literature. She is an assistant editor for the Campus Voices section and is so excited to be a part of such an immersive organization on campus. Outside of the Weekly, you can find Emily rereading "Little Women," binge watching "Gilmore Girls," or being really cool practicing her flute and guitar.
