Beating your Monday blues

Does a feeling of dread and anxiety drown you the afternoon before a new work week begins? If not, consider yourself lucky, for a lot of people do feel anxious, irritable, fearful, and restless on Saturday/ Sunday evening, depending upon the day work week begins where you live.

According to research carried out by LinkedIn in 2018, 80 per cent of American professionals worry about the week ahead of Sundays. In the West, this is known by different names; Sunday syndrome, Sunday blues, Sunday sadness, Sunday scaries, etc. The feeling is just the opposite of what you feel Thursday or Friday afternoon (again depending upon the day your work week ends) when you look forward to the weekend. The thought of weekend fills most of us with euphoria!

Feeling Sunday blues, I will call it Saturday blues to make it more relatable to my readers in Bangladesh, is not uncommon at all. If you feel the blues, do not think that you are the only one feeling it.

Here are a few things that you can consider doing to beat this sinking feeling that overwhelms you before your work day starts. 

Photo: Collected

Enjoy a relaxing-fun activity

Do some relaxing, fun activities at home with family or alone. Choose something that will help you unwind; make you smile and laugh. It could be playing board games, watching a good movie or your favourite TV show, listening to music, journaling, tending to plants, or even preparing a dessert to relish after dinner.

Do not check work email

Unless you are on call or expecting something urgent, do not check your work email on the weekends. You are not supposed to be working on the weekends, rather rejuvenating yourself so you can give 100 per cent at work on weekdays. Therefore, on a Saturday, stay away from checking your work inbox or talking about work on the phone.

Meditate and exercise

To declutter your mind, consider meditating, exercising, or even walking for 30 minutes or more on a Saturday afternoon or evening. You will see that you are beginning to feel refreshed and relaxed right away.  

Reflect

Instead of feeling dreadful about all the things you could not finish last week, and the tasks you will need to complete next week, reflect upon all the things that you completed successfully over the past week. Think about all the things for which you deserve a pat in the back. Instead of focusing on what you 'cannot,' focus on what you 'can' and you 'will.'

Sleep well

On the weekends, we tend to wake up and go to sleep late. However, having a sleep routine is important, weekday or not. You will see that when you have a fixed time to go to bed, it makes going through a hectic work day so much easier. On the weekends, stick to your weekday sleep routine. Yes, there will be weekends when you will need to stay up late because you have, for instance, a get-together with friends or family. That is fine, but do not make late night hanging out with friends a regular activity, especially on a Saturday evening.

Make sure that your bedsheet and pillows are clean and comfortable. Put away your gadgets and switch off the TV at least an hour before you go to bed. Last but not least, do not eat or drink right before you sleep.

The world we live in today expects us to work, work, and work some more. Today, we work so much, but relax so little. The constant pressure that we feel upon our shoulders to chase money and success leave us drained at times. Many of us reach a point where we are terrified or plain sad at the idea of going to work because we know that it is the beginning of just another rat race. However, it does not have to be this way. Remind yourself to enjoy nature, simple living, and family time. Invest in yourself and your well-being; you only live once, after all.