I'm 27. I was getting pretty good with the ladies and was using flirting to improve my fluency, because it was a huge drive an motivation. But obviously it made me deviate from my studies. I even taught english at some point and the authority of a teacher made a lot more fluent. Although I was 21. But I've always had ADHD, and it has affected my teaching in the sense that I didn't plan/prepare enough. That same year I won a scholarship to Japan and studied there for 6 years. Studying Japanese and forcing myself to speak it seems to have greatly affected my fluency, Thing is, at 21 when I was going to Japan, I had this illusion that ***it will pass***, Like it's something that I'll overcome. It'll just pass. Aaand, of course it did not. The anxiety finally got, I never took anxyolitics or anything. Without anxylitics, I guess I just burnt out. Getting Arachnoiditis didn't help. These headaches I get daily.... And i guess the youth of being 21(or younger) was a factor and I was capable to be more fluent because of my youth back then, I guess. I'd paraphrase, avoid certain words, just do everything to stay fluent. It's a tough road. The realization that it won't just pass was the toughest part I guess.