Persistent High Ping PS5 Playstation

I have a wired connection and port forwarding...still having ping issues that make it feel like I am playing in mud. Speed test checks show 16ms-18ms ping constantly and other online games that monitor real-time also show these levels. However, always at a minimum of 34ms and usually between that and 40ms. Anything else I am missing or need to address? Extremely frustrating.