Also everything that blankitosonic said :) Swamp is a game changer but you don't have to dive straight into the swamp. Once I got bored with just meadows and forest, I "baby-stepped" it by just skirting the edge and testing combat against skeletons, leeches and draugr.

If you could answer a few items we could help you with strategy:

1. How patient are you with building? With combat?
2. What are your main melee, shield and ranged items? Total armor score?
3. What food do you usually have on hand? Your best recipes?
4. Use portals often? Have you tried just dropping a portal shed quickly after exploring far?