Long time users: Spanish getting worse or better?
Almost 3 years and mine is getting worse, seemingly. Last year I could understand movies easily, conversations...... no doubt I was advanced. This year I have been taking classes, still watching movies but not as much, but I just feel like I can't understand as much....... granted I am watching movies from Spain and Argentina too but I don't get it. Had to turn off Las Crónicas de Narnia 3, it was just no fun to watch because I was only getting 60 percent of it, and that's just not enough to enjoy it. I don't get it. :(
I can understand women but not men. Lots of stuff I had learned already seems to be disappearing from my knowledge repository. I ace all my Spanish classes but I feel like the actual converstions are slipping by me lately. Maybe I'm just noticing it more. I don't know.
Long time users, do you feel the same? Registration date: April 2009.
19 Answers
Jeezzle said,
Almost 3 years and mine is getting worse, seemingly.
I think the word "seemingly" is the key here.
I cannot believe for one second that your Spanish is getting worse. Do you remember Jeezzle the thead that you moderated for me? I asked you becuase I had total confidence in your ability to "pick-up" and correct the Spanish mistakes of others. And I was right, as far as I'm concerned you nailed every mistake.
I feel you're going through a period of self-doubt, as most of us do from time to time. And yes I also am a long-time "resident" here but by my very nature I am a "plodder". However sometimes my Spanish learning journey seems like a slippery slope - one step forward, two steps back. So do I feel the same? At this point in time? No.
And the Narnia 60 per cent thing - perhaps you were tired and were suffering from a bit of brain-fog at the time. But 60 per cent - you'd probably get the gist of it with 60 per cent. I'd have another crack at it !
I think you should ease-up on the expectations you have of yourself Jeezzle - and "April 2009" it's just a date in the past - look straight ahead!
I can understand women but not men
¿Por qué no me sorprende esto eh? jeje
Pues a mí me pasa al revés
Hello jeezzle ,I know I'm not a long time user.(One year).But I feel like I am slipping too.I think as limited as I am now,I was better at understanding some things just 2 months ago. I think it must be the ebb and flow of learning. From what I can tell about you ,I would bet you've raised the bar on yourself . I would bet a badge you'll feel differently in the coming month.Hope you get some good encouragement from the long time users. Buena suerte, jeezzle. Compared to me you are advanced.
My Spanish is still improving, but I still make a lot of stupid mistakes too.
. . .and I don't understand women in Spanish or English. 
I rate your Spanish as very good. You can tell you have a good take on it by the questions you ask. Maybe you're pushing yourself too hard, sometimes it helps to relax the tension, kind of watch it from the corner of your eye.
Something I'm finding helpful is that I have dictionaries on a kindle so every day I make a point of reading at least two Spanish papers. The quick access on the kindle is very helpful and unobtrusive so I don't feel self-concious on a bus or in a public place when checking things up. Good luck, I think everyone has little phases of self doubt but they pass.
I know I have a long way to go myself. Still there is a lot I don't yet know how to say, much less understand. But looking back when I knew no Spanish and what I know now, I have learned much, I am sure you know more now than when you started.
You are right about using correct methods of learning. That is why I use several methods. Except for taking classes. I try not to think too much in terms of grammar rules but I have found that learning sentence structures helps the most to understand meaning.
Maybe you are overstudying? Perhaps you should try more casual reading as well as watching movies? Learning words in context of text can be a great help. Thats how I learned por to mean by. Casually watching infomercials helped me some too. That is where I learned antes and despues.
I think your Spanish is more advanced than mine. I understand the frustration. When I feel that frustration I think of back to the time when I didn't even understand gender or even how to say buenas noches. Look ahead my friend, I believe we will learn more in the next two years than in the last two years. 
Tu amigo,
¡Amor y paz!
I think that this is a common feeling, Jeezle. There is a natural flow to learning. Just wait a while and keep on doing what you have been doing. I know you are making progress. Have you seen this thread?
Do you feel down? Not learning enough? Come to Encouragment Island/Isla de Apoyo!
Lots of stuff I had learned already seems to be disappearing from my knowledge repository. I ace all my Spanish classes but I feel like the actual converstions are slipping by me lately. Maybe I'm just noticing it more. I don't know.
If you'll allow me to be Señor Obvio here, understanding grammar rules and knowing vocabulary well enough to ace the tests is a very different skill than understanding Spanish spoken at normal speeds.
And just like any other skill, you lose it if you don't use it. Could it be that you've been studying more and listening less?
I don't think that overall my skills are getting worse. They're getting better. But certain aspects of things I use less do tend to come and go. That's natural.
Of course, it may just be that Las Crónicas de Narnia 3 is a bit more difficult than what you're used to listening to.
But Jeezle...I know you put the time in with Spanish todos los días. If you think your listening skills have dropped off a bit, then maybe work harder on that part for awhile?
"I can understand women but not men"
I have a book about Spanish which goes into a lot of detail, in fact frequently too much detail for me. Something I strongly recall from it is that when studying different dialects it's mostly found that women and older people are 'conservative' in the way they talk, whereas men and younger people are more 'innovative'. I felt a bit annoyed when I first read it, because I like the idea of being innovative and creative.
However, I realise that I am actually pretty conservative in how I talk, also I tend to adapt my speech at times to ensure I am understood, or to fit in. Still trying to be a good girl lol.
Anyway, whatever the truth or otherwise on this point, I have to say I find the same as you when watching films or tv in Spanish. Women and old people are generally easier to understand. Also the more 'educated' people.
I agree with other posters on here, and Annie, Helio and Sandy have expressed it very well.
No te das des por vencido, amigo. Estás Eres una inspiración para muchos de nosotros aquí.
I've left my beginner's errors so you can see I still make them. ;p
Jeezzle, I feel your pain! Language learning is a crazy process that never ends. Although my conversational skills are better overall than they have ever been, it seems like I forget simple grammar rules all the time now. I talk to a lot of people from different countries almost everyday, yet I sometimes feel lost. I think you need to keep it in perspective that almost no one ever reaches "fluency" in another language. After spending 2 and a half years intensely studying another language I think I understand. I see that the people I used to think were "fluent" still are learning and make lots of mistakes. My brother in-law is a translator from Perú, yet he always makes mistakes and still asks questions. Don't get discouraged it is just part of the process. With the level of passion that you obviously have, you will keep progressing.
Do you have a lot of relationships with Spanish speakers? I find that at this point in my development, that is what helps me the most. No matter how much grammar you know, nothing can replace the human touch and spontaneous conversation. I know you work in a restaurant like me, so at least you speak Spanish at work. With the level that you are trying to attain, I would recommend trying to develop relationships with people from as many Spanish speaking countries as possible (friends, girlfriends, etc.) The next step, one which Im trying to take, is to live in another country for a while.
I know you are 100% committed to learning Spanish, so I know you will overcome this this plateau. Just remember we all feel this way sometimes. Is it worth it? Will I become fluent? Am I wasting my time? If it was easy everyone would be bilingual.
What you are experiencing is completely normal. Whether perceived or real, the 'up' and 'down' phenomenon in the language acquisition process is to be totally expected. Some days you have it, some days you don't. Some days you feel like you've taken 2 steps forward, some days it feels like you haven't moved anywhere, and some days (like you are now) you feel like you've taken 3 steps back!
The learning process/humans are not built in such a linear fashion - that is to say - we don't just reach one achievement and continue this straight line upwards in terms of progress. Just because one day you're using the 'present perfect' and mixing in the 'preterit' does not mean, hey, I've achieved it! No need to practice on this again now as I've mastered it! The next day you very well may just stink at that very same skill you were handling pretty well the next day.
Think of the language learning process like weightlifting. Weightlifters have their plateau days as well (where they are stuck in progress). They also have bad days where they actually lose strength/mass, and of course they have their good, gain days where they actually do increase. To analogize even more between the two, you may be even overtraining! In weightlifting, the time you're actually in the weight room, you're breaking your muscles down. It's only during the rest days when you're not lifting/using that muscle that it actually grows back stronger. If you really feel burned out and really feel like you're taking too many steps backward, you may want to take a rest day and let your Spanish learning muscles have a rest.
-Charlius-
I'm not a long-timer, but I am a life-long learner. So I'll just mention two things:
(1) When you only know 4 words and you learn 4 more, you have doubled your vocabulary. Perception is relative
I'm sure you've heard it said, the more you know, the more you know you don't know.
(2) Nobody is "fluent" in their native language. If I started talking to you in technical terms mixed from several fields, believe me, I'd lose you pretty fast. Don't forget, English contains close to a million words.
When I was learning Russian and read Tolstoy, I never knew the word -- even after I looked it up -- in English! Why? They were referring to parts of harnesses and such which I'd never learned, nor want to learn.
You are so magnificently brilliant. Think a minute and you will realize your feelings are a direct reflection of your attainments. 
¡Felicidades, amigo mío!
All I can say Jeezle is that you ask great questions and seem to be trying to learn the language in all the right ways. Learning is a funny thing sometimes. I know I've been here since May of 2009 and I have had ups and downs in my learning. I feel like I'm getting things sometimes and not getting it other times. The fact of the matter is, I'm learning....the ebbs and flows of learning is what makes me strive to do better in everything I do. Don't be disheartened with this take it as a learning opportunity. Maybe like Goyo said, take a few and concentrate on speaking and listening more. I know I need too. My friend, you'll be fine!!
Jeezle you are doing great getting 60 percent wow ! If I get ten words out of a movie I am jumping up and down like I just got a gold medal in the Olympics.
I agree with 4Annie:
It is impossible you're going backwards.
What I think your problem is:
You have been paying more attention to the meaning of words and their usage (grammar) and have not been tending to your ears.
Watch more movies, and do not give up so easily, to the point of not watching the movie anymore because you are not "understanding".
OK?
