Psychologist’s tips for dealing with ‘Sunday scaries’, the stress of starting the week

Difficulty: Summiteer (Level 3)

Sunday afternoons can be stressful as you get ready to head back to school after a weekend away.

Lolita Schmalenberg is a psychotherapist at Lifespan Counselling in Hong Kong. She explains why people feel anxious on Sundays before school starts again, and she provides tips on how to feel better.

Why you feel worried

This feeling is also known as “Sunday scaries”.

“Sunday afternoon to evening in many homes is marked by preparations for the start of the school week. Backpacks are filled and weekly schedules with tutors and activities confirmed,” Schmalenberg said.

All this stress can make students feel worried about the bad things that might happen next week. This could include worries about catching up in class, completing schoolwork and failing to perform well.

All of these concerns can give rise to the “Sunday scaries” and other related anxious behaviours such as restlessness, irritability or acting out.

This stress might cause someone to become upset over small issues and end up yelling at others.

How to deal with “Sunday scaries”

Schmalenberg has some tips to fight off the “Sunday scaries”.

These include picking up self-care habits such as eating healthy food, exercising several times a week and being in nature. You can also take up creative activities to help you relax and zone out, such as colouring, listening to music or making something of your own.

It can also be helpful to go over the coming week’s activities and find something to look forward to.

When you feel anxious, take in deep breaths or try balloon breathing – breathe in with the nose and push the air out of the mouth, while sighing on the last breath.

“Balloon breathing can help you focus and get oxygen flowing through your body,” the psychotherapist said.

Most importantly, speak to an adult if you feel overwhelmed.

Use the puzzle below to test your knowledge of the vocabulary words in the story.

Suggested answers

• Stop and think: How are the “Sunday scaries” different from other forms of anxiety? The “Sunday scaries” are nerves specifically about what has not yet happened, and often reflect the things we will have to face when the school week starts on Monday.

• Think about it: What might someone do when they are struggling with the “Sunday scaries”? According to Dr Schmalenberg, people tend to act with anxious behaviours and might be naughty in response to the Sunday scaries. She also said that some people might be unable to focus, while others will have extreme emotions to small problems.

• Consider: What breathing technique can help when you are anxious, and why does it help? The breathing technique is “balloon breathing”, and it helps a person get more oxygen into their bodies as well as focus on their breath.