The Sunday Scaries Are Real—But You’re Not Alone
- Reia Chapman, LCSW, LISW-CP
- Jul 13
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 27
A gentle guide to beginning your week with more ease, more breath, and more energy.
You know that feeling.
It creeps in around Sunday afternoon—just as the sunlight starts to dim and your mind starts fast-forwarding into everything you have to do tomorrow. The texts you didn’t respond to. The unread emails. The meals you haven’t prepped. The laundry that didn’t fold itself.
That blend of restlessness, dread, and pressure?
We call it the Sunday Scaries.
But here’s the truth: you’re not broken or lazy or doing it wrong. Your nervous system is responding to a culture that glorifies busyness, perfection, and productivity without offering real tools for sustainable rhythm.
If Sundays feel like an emotional bottleneck, you’re in the right place. Let’s shift the script—not by forcing a productivity hack, but by learning to soften the edges of your week before it begins.
Welcome to your Sunday Reset.
7 Gentle Ways to Start the Week With Ease & Energy
These are not rules. They’re invitations. Each one is rooted in real psychology, human emotion, and compassionate ritual. Take what works. Leave the rest.
Name what you’re feeling—without judgment.
Anxiety thrives in vagueness.
If you feel “off,” try getting curious instead of critical. Ask yourself:
Is this dread? Is it grief? Is it pressure?
Is my brain forecasting fear or just trying to protect me?
Simply naming what’s true takes the emotional voltage down. You don’t need to solve everything—just listen with honesty.
✨ Try This: Write one sentence that begins, “Right now, I feel…” in your Notes app or journal. That’s it.
Do one thing that makes you feel like you.
Before you clean, prep, or plan—pause.
Do something small that reconnects you to your selfhood.
Water your plants
Light your favorite candle
Listen to a song that makes you feel human again
This signals to your brain: I matter, even before the to-do list begins.
Let Sunday be soft, not a second Monday.
Your Sunday doesn’t need to be a sprint to “get ahead.”
Rest isn’t earned—it’s necessary. And productivity is not a prerequisite for worthiness.
🔁 Reframe it: “I’m not behind. I’m beginning again.”
Reset your nervous system before trying to reset your schedule. You’ll think clearer when your body feels safe.
✨ Need support starting your week with more breath and less burnout? Join The Sunday Reset here →
Make one promise to your future self—and keep it.
Pick a tiny commitment that future-you will thank you for.
Lay out clothes for the morning
Set your coffee on a timer
Pack a snack for your Monday self
These micro-acts build trust, not just habits. They remind your brain: “I’ve got me.”
Release the idea of the perfect week.
You will forget things. You will run late. You will need breaks.
This is not failure. It’s life.
When we expect flawlessness, we set ourselves up for shame. When we expect flexibility, we create space for resilience.
✨ Try This: Rewrite your to-do list with one “wiggle day” built in. You’re not weak for needing it—you’re wise for allowing it.
Ask yourself: What do I need, not just what do I owe?
Your schedule shouldn’t only reflect external demands. It should hold space for internal nourishment.
Instead of jumping straight into obligation, ask:
What do I need emotionally this week?
What would help me feel more grounded?
Where can I say no—or not right now?
Needs are not indulgent. They’re information.
End Sunday with a ritual, not a reaction.
Don’t let the end of the weekend get hijacked by scrolling, doom-planning, or guilt-cleaning.
Instead, create a closing ritual—something simple that tells your body, We’re okay to begin again.
A warm shower with music
A short reflection
Turning off your phone and lighting a lamp
Reading one paragraph of a comforting book
It doesn’t have to be fancy. It just has to be yours.
✨ Ready for a softer, steadier start?
Join The Sunday Reset - a weekly pause to begin youe week with more breath, not more pressure. You'll get therapist-created rituals, reflections, and tiny resets to support your nervous system and your real life.
💌 Reset Me
Let’s Reset Together
If this resonated, you’re not the only one. So many of us are craving a softer start, a more grounded rhythm, a new way to meet the week.
That’s why I’m creating something for you:
🌿 The Sunday Reset — a gentle, nourishing newsletter that drops into your inbox each weekend with reflections, rituals, and reminders to begin again with care.
It’s not about doing more.
It’s about remembering who you are—before the noise begins.
Want in?
Join The Sunday Reset here:
Let’s begin again, together.
With ease. With energy. With intention.
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