Definitely need something. I’ve been using Pobol Y Cwm but it’s not enough.
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I’m not sure it’s about efficiency - I think there really is nothing more efficient than throwing this kind of bulk input at your brain, once you’ve finished Level 3 - but the emotional journey is a very important part of it all… 
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Hi @briangillam,
Well, what you say sounds promising if your journey ends up being similar to mine.
Personally I found this point to be the ‘brow of the hill’.
In the early days I would drag myself up to this point by going through the transcript and translating it myself - somehow I remembered more afterwards…(slightly non-standard but I have to say - if you have the time - I would strongly recommend it)…
From that point my understanding would get a rocket boost - on subsequent listens, by listening over, I would get to understand almost everything.
Initially this seems like a false understanding… but I’d say ‘not really’ now…
Recently when I’ve had that feeling that I know the words (but can’t put the conversation together quickly enough), I have even skipped reading the transcript and just listened over - perhaps looking up a section eventually if clarity doesn’t emerge.
So if you are at this point I would say it is a very good sign.
Of course each conversation is different - i found (find) a huge range of ‘difficulties’ across the conversations…so the whole process is a bit of a gray-scale.
Now after about six months, I am generally just listening over rather than reading the transcript.
Please note when I started, it felt as tough as it gets (ie. am I going to be able to do this?).
This doesn’t mean that I’m a ‘fluent listener’ now but I can confirm that I have made significant progress. I can also confirm that progress was hard to detect en route.
My understanding of Radio Cymru has improved dramatically…and I am starting to think, well you know…I might be able to speak and understand this language one day - soon. 
Rich
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Thank you for your reply I will give it a try!
Brian
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I’ve always felt I was lagging a bit behind you on this journey, Rich. I think I may just about be reaching this ‘brow’ now.
I too have always read the trawsgriff and translated the bits I don’t get for myself. I don’t use the translation unless i can’t figure out a passage at all ( which is happening less and less often). So my reading understanding has definitely progressed. But it does still mostly feel like my brain can’t work fast enough to catch up with the spoken word first time round. And then on subset (post transcript listening) it’s at least partly a case of matching what I hear to what I remember.
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Hi @Catriona,
Ha, ha, well that is a very funny thing because I have always thought the same thing - but the other way around 
Sometimes you’ve said that a Sgwrs was nice and clear when I thought it was quite difficult and I’ve thought - ooo - she’s good - better than me.
The other thing I’ve been doing is reading - I’m sure you have too. I’ve just read Llyfr Glas Nebo - which I thought was an amazing book - and on the back of that I’m currently reading Blasu - both by Manon Steffan Ros (because I liked the first so much).
I have found both of these (very) tough going at times (heavy dictionary assistance) but I think reading sort of normalises what you know and exposes you to what you don’t - so that even that seems normal too.
It is difficult to know which thing has what effect exactly- perhaps them all together.
Something has clicked more recently in terms of understanding words - beginnings, endings and in particular the compound nature of most words (ie they are made up of others) - it seems less like there is an impossibly long list of words to learn - because actually they are all made from ones I already know.
I can feel myself nearly understanding many of the conversations on Radio Cymru…nearly being an important word in that sentence(!)…I am hoping that in 6 months time I can remove that word from a summary of my progress.
I am not sure how realistic that is but my second SSIW anniversary will be in October- and I’m aiming for that!
Not sure how to measure it though?! 
Rich
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Ooh - I read Llyfr Glas Nebo. I thought it was amazing. Used the dictionary a LOT, but still managed to respond to it really emotionally. And I have just bought Blasu, for the same reason.
My second anniversary will be at the end of the year, so we really are tracking each other quite closely.
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