Some things that help me a lot, in order of helpfulness (for me): * Read formulae aloud, using natural languages for symbol names (it is not "sigma of k from i

Some things that help me a lot, in order of helpfulness (for me): * Read formulae aloud, using natural languages for symbol names (it is not "sigma of k from i to j", it is a "summation of terms with k from i to j"). * Look at the proofs/construction of these formula and understand them. * Look at translations of the formulae (applied physics textbooks, more often program code); sometimes it helps to work your way back to the formula from a starting point you are more comfortable with. * Understand that making up symbol meanings ad hoc is one of the perks of mathematicians - you can find fights within a single math department on how notation should be.