> Yep, this is the number one reason people think they aren’t suited for math. Everything is built on everything else, and if you missed anything you’re screwed. It takes a while to realise you are screwed, you can get by on rote for a surprising distance.

That's exactly what happened to me!

This is why I'm learning about differentiation yet struggling to factor simple fractions with a surd.

It's similar to the "expert beginner" problem described by Erick Dietrich (https://daedtech.com/how-developers-stop-learning-rise-of-th...).