Finding It Hard to Keep Up with Salah

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah, I hope everyone is in good health and iman. This is my first time ever opening up about something so personal, but I’m honestly struggling a lot. I was raised in a Muslim home, but I only knew bits and pieces about Islam, and a lot of it was mixed with cultural traditions that weren’t actually part of the deen. As I got older, I drifted away from belief completely. I went years without thinking about religion at all, until a couple of years ago when someone explained some Islamic concepts to me, and that sparked my curiosity. I started reading, learned how to pray, and my iman became really strong. I prayed consistently for almost six months without missing a single salah, then I stopped. About a year later, I went to Saudi and performed Umrah, alhamdulillah, but after that I stopped praying again. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about it, even though I haven’t prayed regularly since this past Ramadan. Even with it on my mind every day, it’s so hard to just get up and do it. I have some bad habits that I can’t seem to shake, no matter what I try. I feel tired all the time, and the emptiness from not praying just makes everything worse-it’s like a vicious cycle. I’m studying two programs and working full-time, and I’m exhausted literally all the time. I don’t eat properly, I’ve gained weight, and I’ve almost completely stopped exercising. All my energy goes into finishing my studies, and I just feel awful. I miss the strong faith I used to have, and that feeling of gratitude to Allah for even giving me the desire and love for prayer. I know it might sound silly because nothing is actually stopping me, but I just don’t understand why it’s so difficult and why I keep breaking the habit of praying. Also, I live alone, and my friends are on a completely different path. None of them practice Islam at all. Sometimes I go to the mosque, but not very often. The one habit I’ve managed to keep is learning Arabic on Duolingo daily for about 4-5 months, because I want to be able to read the Qur’an in Arabic. Sorry for any grammar mistakes, English isn’t my first language. Have you ever struggled with prayer? How did you find your way back? And for those who never miss a prayer and have been consistent for years, what goes through your mind before you pray? How do you push yourself when you’re completely drained and exhausted? Jazakum Allahu khayran.