I’ve always been a fast reader in English, which I attribute to my mom reading to me before I could speak and me picking up books the moment I could read. Though I slowed down after starting college (study time meant less brainpower for casual reading), I found that my reading speed went back to what I was used to the more I did it.

That said, I realized two things during college: 1. Reading textbooks and dense material IS slow. You’re trying to read, parse, and retain material – that’s just more to do than something meant for casual reading. And 2. Reading speed is all about practice and exposure. The more you read, the more your brain will get used to the exercise. The more you read textbooks (especially if they’re the same subject matter), the better you’ll get at parsing and retaining.

As one more anecdotal note, I’m currently learning Japanese and started reading native materials earlier this year. And it was a SLOG: I’d take 15 minutes to read one page… of a children’s book. Needless to say, that was demoralizing and painful. But now, almost a year later, I’m reading high school level material and playing games like Persona 5 with a decently comfortable speed (note: I’ve studied for a few years, so I’m not saying that’s a normal pace for new Japanese learners).

Same thing there: practice and exposure to the activity helped me get faster. That sucks because it takes time, but the good news is that you can and will improve. Just keep at it!