There's something that happens every Sunday, when the sun peaks through my California window, nestling itself into the space in which I slept. The neighbors are out, the weekend feels as though at it's end, and I should be gearing up for another busy week ahead... but instead, I feel the call to stay in, stay quiet, and connect to something. There's a part of my heart, a deep little corner, something beyond the depths of consciousness, that needs to be rediscovered on Sundays, so I can feel complete again. So I can face another week.
There is no way to describe it really, but I can tell you what it feels like: It feels like a part of my soul that keeps me grounded. It feels like a part of my mind and my heart that lets me know I'm okay, I'm on the right path, I'm doing what I should be doing. It's a part of my thought process, a puzzle piece in my own identity, that when it's lost, I feel lost too.
My friends call this the "Sunday Scaries" -- that feeling of knowing the weekend is coming to a close. That impending doom of the loss of freedom. They tell me it's that panic one has knowing soon they'll be sitting in a office, hungover from choices of abandon, and that the Sunday scaries are something everyone gets. But I don't agree. I tell them my Sunday Scaries are just my heart being called back to it's own potential. It's just the call of my soul toward my highest self. My Sunday scaries are induced by the realization that this is my day of the week to quiet down, rest, and reconnect.
Inevitably, by Sunday, we feel as though we in want. The difference is, I go out looking for that feeling again. I don't avoid it with drinking too much or trying to jam pack my Sunday with errands. I just take the Sunday Scaries as an indication it's time to check in and see how life is really going...
Take into consideration, for just a moment, that your fear of the weekend ending is because the life you've built is not actually deeply and truly satisfying, and that somewhere deep down you actually want more... but instead are doing your best to avoid that truth...
Sunday Scaries
How to make Sundays more restorative and inspiring
Take care of yourself
The happy hour is long gone, the big dinner out is over, and today's the day to put health, body, and rest in first priority. Not just rest in terms of sleep -- think of the places your mind can rest from worry. Think of places your creativity can be fed and nourished. Think of ways your mind can rest in the bigger picture, not stressed about the details of a week to come. There will always be other people and things that want your attention and energy, but unless you put yourself first and take care of yourself, you won't have anything to give anyone else.
Seek out inspiration -- don't wait for it to come to you
In books, in people, and in conversation. Stop looking for flashy stories in celebrity headlines and start reading again (for me, it's Patti Smith). Pick up a book of poetry, go to a museum, whatever works for you.
Best yet, if you have the energy, go out and sit in the park alone, and listen to the story of the wind through the trees. Or watch the fairytale the clouds are showing that day. Something not quite pleasant happens when we're ignorant of the world around us, and the magic happening in our natural surroundings. Just a moment to remember that the world is working to keep life balanced in every direction, that all the magical elements of nature are collaborating at every moment -- the sun and the clouds, the soil and the bud, the birds and the wind - can put things back in perspective.
Make room for Intuition to speak
If it feels as though you're avoiding something with the Sunday Scaries, it's likely because there's a thought in your own mind your denying, and it's time to come to terms. Stop avoiding; start listening. There is a voice that speaks without words, as they say. That voice is the only one who can tell you if something doesn't feel right about the way your living or treating yourself and others. So get quiet, sit alone, meditate (I can teach you how in this online class), or take a long bath and a long look back at what your doing and why. And that little voice will whisper up a bit of wisdom and guidance. But you have to make time for it, and space for it to start a conversation with you.
Face The Music
And if you hear, deep in your heart, that your intuition doesn't feel satisfied; that something about your current reality isn't truly right for you, be honest with yourself. The quickest way to give away all your personal power is to go along with something you know isn't right, but tell yourself everything is fine. If it's not fine (your job, your relationship, your living situation, your health), then let it be ok that it's not fine. Be honest about wanting more, and you'll identify your starting point. Living in denial of the truths of your own life is the surest way to misery.
Have your own favorite restorative and inspirational tips for avoiding the Sunday Scaries? Share them in your comments below!
Rachael Yahne is an award-winning blogger, writer, cancer survivor and inspirational speaker, helping women find their purpose, feel more beautiful, and fall back in love with their lives.
Visit her website at HerAfter.com, and shop for her ebooks and online courses HERE.