Painting Progress and Conundrums

Taking a four month or so break has depleted a lot of my knowledge and muscle memory that now I am forced to slow down and watch the piece like a hawk. Midway through my coloring, I had to delete half of my progress to fix some silly mistakes. I wonder if I am rushing too much into producing a completed piece instead of spending more time on anatomy, and basic shadows. I’ve been looking at it for too long that even with multiple horizontal flips, I don’t notice the mistakes anymore.

It kind of sucks that every time I hit a new milestone or breakthrough, it feels like I’ve peaked and I can’t make a piece better than the one before. It contributes to multiple month long art block and disappointments, with mediocre pieces in the middle. I wonder if I am asking too much to have this piece be something greater than what I normally do?