Sunday night blues

Sunday night blues is a purported psychological condition in which anxiousness is experienced the evening before returning to work, typically on a Sunday evening. It is also commonly known as "The Sunday Scaries". The Sunday night blues is a condition understood as “anticipatory anxiety” and intensifies as the work week approaches. There are a variety of types of anticipatory anxiety, each with differing symptoms, and many coping strategies that have been studied in the field of psychology. Sunday night blues, in particular, spans generations, including Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers, and the condition's manifestations are felt differently across the age groups. The Sunday night blues is discussed in magazine articles, blog posts, and scientific studies.

The Sunday night blues is best known as anticipatory anxiety in the field of psychology. Those afflicted are reported to fear the unknown and the uncontrollable future. Uncertainty and unpredictability, generally, are key causes of anxiety that greatly affect one’s mental and physical health. This is explained in the “uncertainty and anticipation model of anxiety” (UAMA) that gives five reasons why unpredictability plays such an important role in anxiety. The five are as follows:

• Inflated estimates of threat, cost and probability
• Increased threat attention and hypervigilance
• Deficient safety learning
• Behavioral and cognitive avoidance
• Heightened reactivity to threat uncertainty

Although Sunday night blues is a relatively little studied condition, reports exist of ways people live with, tolerate, and adapt to the condition.

Signs and symptoms

Neurologically, there are different parts of the brain that are involved when anticipatory anxiety is triggered. The amygdala, the nucleus of the stria terminalis, ventromedial, the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and the anterior insula are stimulated in response to an unforeseen or uncontrollable threat. Symptoms include:

• Hyperventilating
• Chest pain
• Muscle spasms
• Rumination
• Difficulty concentrating
• Feelings of depression

Utilizing the UAMA model can aid in identifying causes and either responding to them effectively or ideally anticipating them in order to avoid the Sunday night blues. This model also connects different features of how unpredictability unfolds in the brain, and helps stimulate further research on the topic as a whole.

Causes

A state of anticipatory anxiety is triggered due to daily variation in mood, and has been coined as the “weekend effect”. People are proven to be more happy on weekends when they have higher levels of freedom and the ability to spend time with close family and friends. This autonomy and opportunity for emotional connection improves overall wellness. This is contrasted with the work week, which consists of limited independence, intense time demands and pressure, and little emotional connection with colleagues. Because individuals tend to feel better on the weekend, the looming work week prompts anticipatory anxiety, and thus the Sunday night blues.

The Sunday night blues is heightened by the advancement of technology which has increased the level of interconnectivity between professionals and the ability to work remotely through the use of email and other media. The use of technology in the workplace varies with age as well. Adobe’s fourth annual Consumer Email Survey poll found that the younger portion of a company spends more hours per day on tasks like email than those older. Younger people struggle more with balancing work and free time because they tend to spend greater amounts of time on tasks that can be completed any time, anywhere.

Data collected in a survey in August 2018 shows that 80% of professionals reported worrying about the week ahead on Sundays. The numbers also reflect discrepancy among generations; younger generations feel the Sunday night blues to a greater degree. This anticipatory anxiety for the upcoming week is felt 94% of the time for Gen Z and 91% with Millennials. Although, these feelings are felt less by those within Gen X (72%) and Boomers or older (69%). Psychologist Randy Simon offers, “[Younger workers] haven’t had years to get past the mental rebellion that often accompanies return to work.”

Treatment

Coping Mechanisms

Ways to combat the Sunday night blues include writing thoughts down through journaling; creating a set of priorities, goals, or reminders for the future; and staying busy with something enjoyable like a hobby or visiting with loved ones. Also, exploring interests and relaxing blocks Sunday night blues. Another distraction technique is planning something to look forward to in order to sustain motivation. This can be as simple as baking a cake, scheduling a date, or booking a trip. Developing relaxation techniques can minimize the effects of anticipatory anxiety, as well.

Role of Sleep

One of the most critical components to mental health is getting the proper amount of sleep each night. Sleep deprivation is known to amplify the parts of the brain associated with increased anticipatory response connected to clinical anxiety. A study published in the Journal of Neuroscience found that “sleep loss exaggerates preemptive responding in the amygdala and anterior insula…. [This] may hold translational implications regarding the co-occurrence between sleep disruption and anxiety disorders.”

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

The use of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and cognitive behavioral group therapy (CBGT) has proven to be a successful alternative to pharmaceutical treatment for patients suffering from anticipatory anxiety. It typically involves defining the root causes of the anxiety, and discussing how behaviors of avoidance enable the disorder. There is evidence that CBT can create new circuits in the brain enabling people to be more “flexible, focussed, and compassionate.” This type of therapy is also effective in preventing future relapses of symptoms.

See also

• Seasonal affective disorder

External links

• Anxious workers suffer Sunday-night syndrome - Article in the Boston Globe
• Singin' the Sunday-night blues - Seattle Times article
• The End of the Weekend or the Start of Something Good? - New York Times article

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