4 Rules For A ‘Nun Girl Summer’

Yes, some Gen Z trends, like obscure internet slang, are the kind of thing you’d expect from a younger generation.

But others – like a rise in birdwatching and a newfound fixation on nuns – might be a little more surprising.

Some articles say under-30s are booking convent stays instead of beach getaways. Meanwhile The Dominican Sisters Open Mic, a podcast hosted by Catholic nuns, has gone mega-viral.

Sister Gemma Simmonds, a sister of the Congregation of Jesus and author of A Time to Reflect, told HuffPost UK the appeal might stem from younger people being exhausted by “a life of endless optionality and FOMO [fear of missing out]”.

“Our fixed rhythms of prayer, work and community, and a life not built around consumption, are being experienced as freeing rather than restrictive,” she added.

While previous years have paved the way for ‘hot girl summers’, 2026 is giving a new energy entirely, which some have coined ‘nun girl summer’.

The term is a play on Meg Thee Stallion’s years-old “hot girl summer” trend, which is “about being unapologetically YOU, having fun, being confident, living YOUR truth, being the life of the party etc”.

Sister Simmonds told us “nun girl summer” is also about being ourselves.

“I think it might look and feel free: free from the exhaustion caused by the expectation that every domain of the self is permanently being watched and rated for optimisation, including by the person herself,” she said.

“Nuns don’t need to perform for the camera – we are convinced that we are ‘awesomely and wonderfully made’. If you believe that, you don’t need to wait for anyone else’s approval of how you look or sound, how you rate in anyone else’s estimation.

“It’s a different account of female worth that reframes identity away from being chosen or wanted by a man, toward a life whose meaning doesn’t depend on romantic uptake at all.”

Indeed, comments under a viral Open Mic clip include wistful asides about the sense of female community the Sisters seem to have. One reads, “Waittt the idea with living with your girles”, while another jokes, “I’m one situationship away from this”.

Of course, not all of these women want to live in a convent, and many are not religious. So, how can we embody a “nun girl summer” if we’re not (excuse the pun) already in the habit?

We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about the arrival fallacy, which makes it hard to enjoy what you’ve achieved due to worrying about what you haven’t got yet.

Sister Simmonds said it’s important to get in touch “with your own capacity for appreciation of the here and now, not always looking around the corner for what’s next” – that way, you’re present “to the richness” of what’s right in front of you.

Not only is it great for your sleep, but the Sister said mindfully staying away from your screens for an hour or so a day might make a big difference to how you feel, too.

Try to build in unplugged periods like “meals, a commute, an hour before bed, where nothing is being produced or consumed, just being”, she advised.

You might already know that sticking to the same bedtime and wake time is great for your health, and that half-assing a workout is far better than skipping exercise altogether.

Sister Simmonds told us that much of nuns’ daily rhythm is “non-negotiable, regardless of mood”.

Whatever your reflective or health practices are, for her, “prayer works precisely because it doesn’t wait for you to feel like it”.

The Sister said it’s important to make space for relationships “that are non-transactional, that don’t come with an expiry date, that aren’t provisional, networked and subject to ghosting”.

“This can be hard work when you’re practising living with differences in age, outlook, culture, but it’s a strength worth building,” she said.

Research has shown that a strong sense of community may help to reduce dementia risk, and could even make you live longer.