Keep losing until I get better?

In music it's said that you won't improve unless you play with musicians who are better than you, which is very true. But here it seems that I'm always playing against people who are way better than me and my rating keeps going down. For one thing, it seems rather extreme that losing a game means losing 45 rating points. For another, I feel I'm being matched with players who are far out of my league, even though our ratings are pretty much in the same range. It's not that I mind losing, it's the frustration of not knowing how to gain real competitive skills.

I do very well with the puzzles though.

The more you play the more your ratings will stabilise.
Less points gained when winning, losing or drawing.

That's good to know, thanks.