Fear is unfairly maligned.

It lights a fire under one's arse and keeps you alive, as you have discovered.

Growth is pain, but its a healthy pain. I'm delighted you got the proverbial boot in the ass you needed to take action. Actions beat hopes and dreams, every time.

Continue. Do not let up just because things may begin to look better. Keep at it, be persistent. Nothing is more powerful than a dogged, unrelenting refusal to quit coupled with the steadfast determination to take concrete steps every day toward your goals.

"To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."