Helping Keeping Shabbat
Question
Hi Rabbi , my name is Zoriy and im 31 yrs old. I started observing shabbat a while back. I struggle with sleep. One Shabbat I was still awake at around 1 to 2 to 3 even 4 am so during those hrs I got extremely bored and turned on my phone sadly and started being on social media scrolling through videos , watched videos on judaism first but then just random video reels. I want to become better at observing shabbat. I consider shabbat to be of major importance of course. And judaism is important to me personally. I always want to become better but its very difficult, any advice what i can do to be better and/or fix this crucial situation Rabbi ?
Answer
Shalom!
Thank you for writing.
You are to be commended for your efforts to observe Shabbat. That is wonderful. I am sure that when you begin to continuously observe Shabbat you will find it extremely meaningful and enjoyable.
It is clear from your question that you suffer from sleep issues. You must see a doctor to explore whether medication or other treatments are right for you.
Furthermore, you should have a list of activities to do for the nights that you don’t sleep, so when it comes to Shabbat you should have some good books ready to read in the event that you can’t sleep.
Perhaps you can make a schedule of the things se you want to do and accomplish when you have free time or when you can’t sleep. As mentioned, when you make the schedule, ensure that the Shabbat schedule includes activities that are permissible on Shabbat.
It sounds like you might not be affiliated with a local orthodox rabbi or synagogue. As such, I also recommend that you reach out to your local orthodox rabbi and ask him for his assistance. He will be happy to help you attend services and help you on your path to becoming more Torah observant..
Keep learning about Torah and Judaism! You can find all kinds of Torah books in English at Artscroll.com. You should also check out websites like Aish.com where there is a wealth of Torah information.
We wish you much success in your journey and hopefully you will sleep well!