Always focus on your food buffs, be aware of your surroundings and build multiple rest-stop bases (a shed with a workbench for repairs). I realize you're on bronze gear but it's good to have secondary gear that can be repaired with the workbench alone. Not sure if you're leveraging portals either but that's important as well and they can give you a quick "out". Personally I build bases on top of swamp crypts as they're indestructible and keep me high and out of the way. Dropping a portal in there gives me easy access to the entire swamp and the first crypt for collecting iron.

I probably have it easier than most as I started out with bows and rarely did melee as I'm an avid FPS player (still 90% of the time use a bow). Always on the move and always looking around. Even after the bow nerfs I can get by with minimal gear and a finewood bow with wood arrows only (I mostly use wooden arrows even with the Draugr and focus on critical shots like the neck for trolls). If bows are a play style you see yourself getting good with or enjoy enough to work on it, I personally think that's the way to go if you get used to the timing.

And by all means abuse using the hoe to level out walkways throughout the swamp so you don't get stuck and assaulted by leeches and draugr wanting to join in on the kill. I usually restore 1 out of every 2 abandoned ruins, whether a tower or a house. Gives me a place to run away to, especially if I drop a portal in there.