To you, feeling heavy on the last night of the long weekend. Ways to make tomorrow easier.

"Ah, work starts tomorrow..."
"Is that suffocating daily routine starting again?"

The twilight of the final day of Golden Week.

Watching the shadows in the room grow longer little by little and the world outside the window sink into indigo, that unique sensation of a tightening, heavy feeling in the pit of your stomach.

You who opened this article now, aren't you likely caught in that very anxiety?

The sadness that the long weekend, which should have been fun, is ending.
Or perhaps, the anxiety about the busy daily life starting again tomorrow.

These mix together, making tomorrow feel like a giant wall about to crush you.

Today, for you who is "terrified of the end of the long weekend."

Let me share some tips to help you welcome tomorrow a little more lightly, while unraveling the true nature of the "heaviness" lurking in your heart, just a little deeper than usual.

1. "I don't want to go" is proof that your heart is functioning normally

First, the number one thing I want to tell you is that you do not need to blame yourself even one millimeter for feeling "terrified about tomorrow".

"Other people are switching gears just fine, so why am I so useless?" "I'm an adult, so I shouldn't be complaining about something like this."

You might be thinking things like that, but even from a psychological perspective, feeling heavy after a long weekend is an extremely natural reaction.

During the long weekend, you were operating at what you could call your "natural rhythm."

Waking up when you like, eating what you like, and spending time as your heart desires.

Starting tomorrow, you are suddenly pulled back into a world driven by forces other than yourself, such as "social rhythms" and "the expectations of others."

This "sudden change in rhythm" places a greater burden on our autonomic nervous system than you might imagine.

The fact that your heart is screaming "I don't want to go" is like a desperate SOS, as your heart tries to protect the peace you have now.

It is also "proof that you tried your hardest to spend time for yourself up until today."

2. Discarding the "poison" called the regret of "I couldn't do anything"

"I had such a long holiday, but I spent the whole time sleeping."
"When I look at social media, everyone is out at glamorous places, but I just spent the day staring at my phone..."

Are you grading your holiday as a "failure" in that way?

But please, try changing your perspective just a little.

How exhausted were you before the holiday began? How much did you wear yourself out trying to meet the expectations of those around you just to get through each day?

For you, in that extreme state, "doing nothing" and "sleeping like a log" during this holiday was the ultimate, best possible "emergency evacuation" and recovery.

You might not have made any "special memories."

However, you "defended a space of emptiness in your heart so you wouldn't break any further."

That "courage to do nothing" was exactly what you needed most right now.

Therefore, your Golden Week was a perfect 100 out of 100 just as it was.

3. Treat your "last night" as a time to host yourself

When you can't sleep because you're anxious about tomorrow.

Do you find yourself constantly searching "I don't want to go to work tomorrow" on your phone, or checking emails that have piled up?

That has become an "attack on yourself" that only amplifies your anxiety.

Tonight, try consciously "treating yourself to a final bit of hospitality."

• Scribble your "anxieties" on paper and throw them in the trash: Just getting them out of your brain and onto paper creates a little bit of breathing room.

• Fill your five senses with "comfort": Use a slightly nicer bath salt, or carefully lay out your favorite pajamas. Tell your brain, "You are safe now."

• Keep "preparations for tomorrow" to a minimum: Pick out your clothes, leave your bag by the door. Anything beyond that, just leave it for tomorrow's you to handle.

Your job tonight is not to get through tomorrow, but to make yourself feel "good" in this very moment. That is all.

4. Tomorrow, a "30 percent" low-altitude flight is a passing grade

When you walk through the gates of work or school tomorrow, please, do not think, "It's the end of the break, so I need to pull myself together and give it my all!"

If you suddenly run an engine at full throttle, even a machine will burn out. Your goal for tomorrow can be surprisingly low.

For now, just existing at your desk until the end of the day is enough.

That alone is a gold-medal-worthy achievement.

The quality of your work only needs to be about 30% accurate.
Leave important decisions to your future self the day after tomorrow.
Even if you can't talk to anyone with a smile, just exchanging greetings is enough.

You are amazing just for sitting in your chair today.
You are a genius for getting through the morning without panicking.

That kind of overwhelming 'low-altitude flight' is perfectly fine.

The world will start moving at high speed tomorrow, but you can start at your own pace, slowly, as if you are in rehabilitation.

5. If you absolutely cannot move your feet

Even after reading this, if your heart is pounding, tears are coming, and you cannot get out of bed.

In such times, please do not corner yourself.

'Taking the first day after a long weekend off makes me a failure as a working adult.'
'Everyone else is working hard, am I the only one running away?'

Such thoughts might cross your mind, but when they do, try thinking, 'Right now, I need a paid leave from life.' instead.

If you push yourself to the point of breaking your heart, taking an extra day or two off is just a rounding error in the grand scheme of a long life.

Being able to be yourself is thousands of times more important than any job or any position.

Give yourself permission to choose to 'rest'.

Sometimes, just the peace of mind that comes from knowing that 'escape route' exists can strangely give you a little bit of courage.

Final note: It is always darkest before the dawn

On the last night of a long weekend, our imagination becomes a genius at inflating the 'worst-case scenario'.

But remember, you have overcome such nights many times before.

And when tomorrow actually arrives, you will find that everyone around you is also looking sleepy and sluggish, just drifting through the day.

The "monster-like tomorrow" you are afraid of will surprisingly appear in the form of just "a slightly troublesome daily routine."

So, why don't you stop thinking about tomorrow for tonight?

Drink some warm chamomile tea, curl up in the place where you feel most secure, and go to sleep.

Tomorrow is not as scary as you think it is.

If you get scared, please come back here anytime.

You have worked hard enough until today.
And from tomorrow on, you can just walk your own story at your own pace.

It's okay. You will be able to get through tomorrow just fine.

Good night. May you have sweet dreams.

Thank you so much for reading until the end.

If the heavy atmosphere after the long weekend has changed even a little into a light sense of "well, it will work out somehow," there is no greater happiness for me.

If your heart felt even a little warmer, it would be a great encouragement if you could let me know by clicking "Like" or "Follow."

May your tomorrow be peaceful and gentle.

Let's meet again.