I had been struggling with my new year's resolutions and then I found a solution. The opening question I would like to ask my audience is "Have you been struggling with your new year's resolutions like I had been?". However, the last words "... like I had been" sound a bit awkward.
Can I say "Have you been struggling with your new year's resolutions like I did?" Will it lose the meaning I try to convey?
Using past perfect is better since it unambiguously means you are no longer struggling
Have you been struggling with your new year's resolutions like I had been?
I was struggling before, are you still struggling?
or be more consistent with verb usage
Are you struggling with your new year's resolutions like I did?
The first leave the door open that the listener may not be struggling now or possibly struggling on and off, the second means they are still constantly struggling.
A sensible way to deal with this would be to split the sentence.
Have you been struggling with your new year resolutions? I did until ...
Very often, when something seems awkward, that is your brain's way of telling you that you need to rephrase. Using shorter simpler sentences is often clearer.
