diff --git a/config/settings.go b/config/settings.go
index 143b763..95eb393 100644
--- a/config/settings.go
+++ b/config/settings.go
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ func LoadConfig() {
 
 	// Numeric values with defaults
 	config.MaxStreamPoolSize = getEnvAsInt("MAX_STREAM_POOL_SIZE", 50)
-	config.StreamHealthCheckTimeout = time.Duration(getEnvAsInt("STREAM_HEALTH_CHECK_TIMEOUT_MS", 2000)) * time.Millisecond
+	config.StreamHealthCheckTimeout = time.Duration(getEnvAsInt("STREAM_HEALTH_CHECK_TIMEOUT_MS", 5000)) * time.Millisecond
 	config.StreamWriteTimeout = time.Duration(getEnvAsInt("STREAM_WRITE_TIMEOUT_MS", 5000)) * time.Millisecond
 	config.MaxWriteRetries = getEnvAsInt("MAX_WRITE_RETRIES", 5)
 	config.MaxConcurrentWrites = getEnvAsInt("MAX_CONCURRENT_WRITES", 1000)
diff --git a/pkgs/service/libp2p_stream_pool.go b/pkgs/service/libp2p_stream_pool.go
index 6c1d5cf..1d45c0a 100644
--- a/pkgs/service/libp2p_stream_pool.go
+++ b/pkgs/service/libp2p_stream_pool.go
@@ -99,27 +99,22 @@ func (p *StreamPool) GetStream() (network.Stream, error) {
 			p.streams = p.streams[:len(p.streams)-1]
 
 			// Verify stream is on current connection
-			if stream.Conn().ID() == SequencerHostConn.ID().String() {
-				if err := p.pingStream(stream); err == nil {
-					return stream, nil
-				}
+			if stream.Conn().ID() != SequencerHostConn.ID().String() {
+				stream.Close()
+				continue
 			}
-			// Stream is from old connection or unhealthy
-			stream.Close()
-		}
 
-		// If pool is empty, wait and retry
-		if len(p.streams) == 0 {
-			p.mu.Unlock()                      // Release lock while waiting
-			time.Sleep(100 * time.Millisecond) // Wait before retry
-			p.mu.Lock()                        // Reacquire lock
-			continue
+			// Only do ping check if the connection looks good
+			if err := p.pingStream(stream); err == nil {
+				return stream, nil
+			}
+			stream.Close()
 		}
 
-		// If we get here, try to create a new stream
+		// Create new stream if pool is empty
 		stream, err := p.createNewStreamWithRetry()
 		if err != nil {
-			return nil, err
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to create new stream: %w", err)
 		}
 		return stream, nil
 	}
@@ -158,15 +153,14 @@ func (p *StreamPool) pingStream(stream network.Stream) error {
 		log.Debugf("Failed to set stream deadline: %v", err)
 		return fmt.Errorf("failed to set deadline: %w", err)
 	}
-	defer stream.SetDeadline(time.Time{})
+	defer stream.SetDeadline(time.Time{}) // Clear deadline
 
-	// Simple connectivity check
-	if stream.Reset() != nil {
-		log.Debug("Stream failed health check")
+	// Simply check if the connection is closed
+	if stream.Conn() == nil || stream.Conn().IsClosed() {
+		log.Debug("Stream failed health check - connection not alive")
 		return fmt.Errorf("stream is not alive")
 	}
 
-	log.Debug("Stream passed health check")
 	return nil
 }