Dr. Ruth Explains How To Have Good Sex Even As The World Goes To Hell

The patron saint of Jewish sex, Doctor Ruth Westheimer. Image by Getty Images

By Jenny Singer June 28, 2018

You’re not imagining it — things are getting really hard out there.

Or not, as it were. With constant news alerts — children enduring what is essentially state-sponsored torture, the retirement of Supreme Court Justice Kennedy, and the roiling national dispute surrounding civility and protest — it can be hard to keep up. And to keep it up.

Dr Ruth, our erotic Jewish fairy godmother, says we should not take this standing up.

The legendary sex scientist took to Twitter today to remind us that taking time for sex is a civic duty. If the news is getting you down to the point that you can no longer get down — take a break. Like God commanding the people of Israel to keep Shabbat, Dr. Ruth compels her acolytes to take a sabbath from the news, a sex-and-relaxation break that recharges the body and soul and enables one to return on Sunday morning to full-fledged commitment to the news cycle.

My advice for this wknd? If all this negativity in the news is lowering your libido, stop watching the news so that you can enjoy some sex. It will rejuvenate you for whatever is coming next week!

— Dr. Ruth Westheimer (@AskDrRuth) June 28, 2018

Dr. Ruth suffered horrific family losses in the Holocaust, fought for Israel’s existence as a sniper in its war for independence, and has weathered 90 years on three continents. If she says it’s okay to turn off the news for a little re-jew-venation, we’re going to believe her.

Jenny Singer is the deputy lifestyle editor for the Forward. You can reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @jeanvaljenny

Jenny Singer is a freelance writer with pieces in Vox, the Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle, Teen Vogue, and more. She was previously a staff writer at Glamour and the Forward, and she’s currently getting an MFA in nonfiction writing at the University of Iowa.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO