Have you ever had a difficult experience in your past that you tried hard to move on from or keep hidden, only to realize later that it actually prepared you for something you had to face?

Sometimes the parts of our past we wish we could forget end up becoming the very things that help us survive, make better decisions, or recognize situations we once couldn't handle. Has anything from your past ever unexpectedly become useful to you later in life, even though you once wished you could leave it behind?