Relax, it’s just my Uber eats from Alpha Centauri.
On a more serious note, the fact that the object has passed perihelion does not imply that it is also increasing its distance from Earth. If the perihelion takes place in a sector of the solar system opposite from Earth and then the trajectory takes the object at roughly right angles to that point as seen from Earth, it could continue to achieve a closer distance from earth for some time as we move in our orbit closer to its trajectory line (which it has not yet crossed). I have sketched this out below (very roughly it must be admitted) ...
................... o ....................
...................Mars...................
..........................................
..........................ATLAS = = = = = >>>
...........................now.......... (Atlas
..........................................Dec 19)
..........................................
..........................................
........................0.................o
.......................SUN...............o.
........................................o (Earth
......................................o. positions
...................................o... next 3 months
..............................o............
........................o ................
.......................Earth..............
........................(now).............
Bear in mind in my rough diagram, Earth is not all the way around to where I show in three months when Atlas reaches its closest point, it would be more like the second orbital symbol ahead of now ... and also my diagram does not illustrate the actual curved nature of the trajectory of Atlas nor the fact that it may now be curving more to its right heading along. If it continued to curve more to the right than expected you can see where the path is headed.