Four years is a long time to be stuck on section views. Sounds like maybe the issue was staring you right in the face the whole time though, just like how I spent two weeks chasing a weird shading error that turned out to be a layer visibility setting I toggled accidentally. At least you got it sorted, but was it really that deep or just one of those moments where you had to step away and look at it fresh?
Watched my dad spend three hours trying to fix a printer once before realizing it wasn't even plugged in. He just kept hitting the power button and getting frustrated while I stood there sipping my coffee. Sometimes the simplest thing really is the problem, and we're all just too stubborn to admit it.