Buffer Health Issues

So, I've searched and searched and searched, but can't find anything that answers the question I have.

Usually, YouTube will load ahead a full 2 minutes of video, meaning my buffer health will always be at or around 120 seconds. Lately, however, it has only been loading up a 38 second cushion. If I pause the video, it'll just hard stop at a 38 second buffer and when I press play, it will play until it gets down to about a 28 second cushion, then jump back up to 38, but never ever go beyond a 38 second window. I've used different VPN servers, I've turned off my VPN, I've updated DNS options, I've pasted in commands into Command Prompt, I've updated my browser, I've cleared all data/cookies, and at this point I've pretty much done everything I can find short of factory resetting my laptop.

Why does my laptop no longer load the full 2 minutes ahead? This is driving me INSANE.

https://preview.redd.it/772avayvflpb1.png?width=460&format=png&auto=webp&s=7d7b7f206f4109993e1f51604c879fa716bd9fad