Beating the Monday blues: tips on a brighter start to the week from experts, and someone who hasn’t had a case in 20 years
Many people, regardless of their job, start to feel overwhelmed with stress and sadness on Sunday, dreading work the next day. We’ve gathered advice from career coaches and psychologists on why it happens and what you can do
Why do so many of us feel down just before the start of a new work week?
You know the feeling – experts call it the “Monday blues”, but it usually creeps up on you on Sunday afternoon and stays with you until you leave for work the next day. That combination of stress, hopelessness and anxiety can be overwhelming for some, ruining whatever they have got left of the weekend and setting them up for a miserable Monday ahead.
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Graphic designer and photographer Juliana Li understands this feeling all too well. For some time, the 40-year-old Chinese-Canadian dreaded going into work on Mondays – even though she loved her job – because she couldn’t bear the thought of “not having any fun or freedom for the next five days”.
The stressful and competitive nature of her job only added to the problem. “I had to deal with tight deadlines, demanding clients and last-minute project changes,” says Li, who moved to Hong Kong three years ago. “So the office was not exactly where I wanted to be after a relaxing weekend.”
But as horrible as it feels, you should view your funky mood as an asset. That is according to Dr Cathy Tsang-Feign, a clinical psychologist who practises in Hong Kong’s Central district.