My respond to you was made upon exact impression of that life experience I felt in your post, and that's what i loved the most. That understanding of yourself ''then'' and ''now''.
And that's what makes you great to me :)
It's hard school of accepting ourselves.
Sometimes, from this point of view, I would like to come to myself 20 years ago, and to say, it's ok, and it's ok to be like that, it's no shame :)
Yes, we learn, if we want to :)