Freezing usually happens at the beginning, not the middle. Once a sentence is moving, it tends to finish itself. These openers get it moving.

Giving an opinion

  • "The way I see it…"
  • "To be honest…"
  • "In my experience…"
  • "I'd say…"

Buying a moment

  • "That's a good question."
  • "Let me think about that."
  • "How do I put this…"
  • "Off the top of my head…"

These are not filler. Native speakers use them constantly, for exactly the same reason you need them.

Adding to what someone said

  • "Building on that…"
  • "That reminds me…"
  • "On a related note…"

Changing direction

  • "Having said that…"
  • "Then again…"
  • "On the other hand…"

Being uncertain

  • "I'm not entirely sure, but…"
  • "As far as I know…"
  • "Correct me if I'm wrong…"
  • "I could be misremembering, but…"

Signalling uncertainty properly is a mark of fluency, not weakness. It tells the listener how much to rely on what follows.

How to make them automatic

Pick three. Use each one deliberately today, out loud, in a real sentence. Add three more next week. Within a month you will have a dozen available without thinking, and the freeze at the start of sentences will mostly stop happening.

A learner who pauses silently looks stuck. A learner who says "let me think about that" looks thoughtful. Same pause, different reading.