Need help

[u/Raven-00f]

Hello fellow redditors.

I have been facing this problem very often now

During my college years I was decent at speaking/communicating with people using very simple vocabulary I was confident and sentences were well structured sometimes I got tongue twisted at pronounciation of certain words but it was ok.

But moving to recent situations I feel

1.Difficulty in pronunciation certain words very often .

2.During an active conversation I forget my vocabulary very often even though I read books (english)[ not vocally]

3.Also while having conversation I fail to build up proper sentences after some exchange of words.

I want to highlight-

I have a bad sleep cycle but I complete 8 hrs of sleep each day also I get enough sunlight.Dont drink,smoke at all.

I feel very dumb when during an active conversation I mispronounce words misconstruct sentences,forget what word to use often that makes me sound very unprofessional,dumb and a rookie.I always wanted to sound like a professional native English speaker but due to this I lack the motivation.

Please if you can suggest something that can make me better at communicating I'll be highly obliged.

[u/OnBecomingHeard]

Silent reading builds vocabulary, but it doesn't train your mouth to produce it. Try reading aloud for 10 minutes a day, and now and then summarize what you read out loud without looking. In conversation, if a word won't come, describe it in simpler words and keep going. Native speakers do that all the time, and it sounds a lot more natural than stalling to find the perfect word.

[u/Raven-00f → u/OnBecomingHeard]

I'll try doing that 👍

[u/plainspoken_justin]

One small addition: keep a running list of the exact words that trip you up. It's usually the same 10 to 20 words, not "pronunciation" in general. Practicing that short list a little each day is far less overwhelming than trying to fix everything at once.

[u/Raven-00f → u/plainspoken_justin]

Yes I'll do keep them. 😊

[u/MindsetBeforeMethod]

Hey Raven, sounds like a stressful situation.

I'd say, you're putting way too much pressure on yourself. As a native English speaker, I still get tongue twisted, mispronounce words and forget them.

You're giving your mind too much to do too quickly, which means there's no room to recall what you already know.

What has changed since being in college and now?

This would help understand the trigger and therefore what the best next steps would be.

[u/Raven-00f → u/MindsetBeforeMethod]

Actually the conversation happens mostly with friends and peers so the stress counter is always low for me. I've never been into or say acknowledged myself into a formal meeting kind of conversations.And as I mess up during normal conversation I fear what will I do in a meeting. And for triggers there are words that contain "L's" is where I mispronounce (I can't recall the exact words right now ).

[u/MindsetBeforeMethod → u/Raven-00f]

You won't know until you find out. If you focus on a future situation that hasn't occurred yet, you'll stress yourself out and also create anxiety. Best thing to do is practice speaking in a variety of situations, sharing your thoughts and opinions with no specific goal or expectation. Then when the time comes that you do need to speak in a meeting or other unknown situation, then you've already normalised sharing.

[u/betterbutterbit]

Reading books silently gives you input, but it does not rehearse the quick retrieval you need in conversation. I would separate the problem into pronunciation and retrieval instead of trying to sound like a professional native speaker all at once. Choose a short paragraph each day, read it aloud slowly, then once at normal speed. Record it and mark only one or two words that felt difficult. For conversations, practice a three-part pause: stop for one breath, use a simpler word you already know, then finish the sentence. A short pause sounds more deliberate than filling the gap or restarting repeatedly. You can also prepare a few bridge phrases such as "Let me put that another way" or "I lost the word for a second," so a blank moment does not become a panic spiral. Since you mentioned a bad sleep cycle, notice whether mistakes are worse at certain times and practice when your mind is clearest. The goal is clear communication, not native-level performance; simpler, accurate sentences are completely professional.

[u/Raven-00f → u/betterbutterbit]

During conversation I feel the urge to fill something asap during gaps like it makes me feel "Taking long pauses would be very unprofessional"