Stuck in a rut

Hi all,

I’m looking for some advice on some stuff. I began teaching myself German at the beginning of this year. I went full immersion, almost exclusively listening/watching German media. I also bought German editions of some of my favorite childhood books (Eragon, Percy Jackson). My vocabulary has grown significantly, but I’m having a very hard time with the rules on forming subordinate clauses and compound sentences.

I know that common subordinate clauses use the common conjunctions, and that the conjugated verb is moved to the end. However, I’m struggling with relative and infinitive subordinate clauses, and can’t quite seem to get it right. Equally difficult has been compound sentences, and knowing what to put where. I’m also struggling with particles, such as appropriate context for flavoring/filler/softening words doch, aber, mal, etc.

I feel stuck with both of these things. I know it takes time, but for the last weeks now, I’ve been stuck on these concepts. Is there any advice to be shared?

Unrelated, when watching German media as a new learner, how do you do it? Do you start with children shows, or more familiar media? Subtitles or no? Listening is still a consistently weak area for me.

Thank you in advance~