For many, Sunday afternoon brings with it an unwelcome reminder that the weekend is almost over.
By evening, the weekend is technically still underway. But in their minds, some people have already logged back into work.
It’s no surprise that there is a name for this increasingly familiar feeling.
It is called the ‘Sunday scaries’.
The term describes the anxiety, uneasiness or downright dread that some employees experience as Monday draws closer.
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For some, it begins with a passing thought about the alarm going off early the next morning.
For others, it means worrying about work. And that might include overflowing inboxes, unfinished work and difficult colleagues. It could also mean demanding bosses, looming deadlines or simply another week of relentless pressure.
For those who experience the Sunday scaries often, the feeling can be strong enough to spoil what should be the most relaxing part of the weekend.
Of course, not everyone who feels a little unhappy about returning to work has a problem.
When Monday morning comes around, most of us would happily exchange a meeting for another day at the beach, a leisurely breakfast or even a few extra hours in bed.
After all, there is nothing strange about wishing a weekend could last that little bit longer.
At the same time, there is a big difference between being disappointed that Sunday is ending and feeling genuinely anxious and uncomfortable about what Monday might bring.
Unsurprisingly, the causes of the Sunday scaries are many and varied.
Many employees worry because they know they are returning to an unreasonable workload. Some dread the thought of dealing with a particular manager. Others fear facing a difficult colleague or a workplace where expectations seem to change from one day to the next.
Increasingly, many are anxious about job security or upcoming performance discussions. Others dread yet another organizational restructure.
And there are simply those who feel exhausted by the prospect of five more days of doing work they no longer enjoy.
Add to all of that, the growing intrusion of work into our personal lives. It hardly helps.
Smartphones, email notifications and workplace messaging platforms mean the working week can start at any point during a weekend–and not just on Monday morning.
A single message from the boss on a Sunday afternoon can be enough to turn a pleasant family gathering into an unpleasant reminder of everything waiting at work.
Of course, there are a number of practical things employees can do to reduce their Sunday night worries.
Wrapping up Friday with a clear list of priorities for the following week can help. So too can resisting the temptation to check work messages over the weekend.
Avoiding an overloaded Monday calendar and making sure Sunday includes something enjoyable might also help.
But advice about taking a walk, practising mindfulness or getting an early night can only go so far.
No amount of Sunday afternoon relaxation will fix an unreasonable workload, a bullying boss or a workplace where employees feel constantly under pressure.
That is where employers have a responsibility to act.
To start with, they need to consider whether workloads are manageable.
They also need to ensure managers are not creating unnecessary stress.
And they should determine whether workplace expectations are spilling too far into employees’ personal lives.
Managers should also think carefully before cramming Monday mornings with meetings.
And importantly, they should avoid sending Sunday evening messages that could easily wait until the next day.
To be clear, a workplace does not have to be perfect for employees to look forward to returning.
But it should not be something that people spend their weekends worrying about.
We tend to laugh about Mondayitis. We joke about needing another weekend and reassure ourselves that everyone feels the same way.
Yet when Sunday dread becomes a weekly reality, it might be telling us something important about the jobs we do and the workplaces we return to.
When work regularly starts spoiling Sunday, the problem may have very little to do with Monday.
