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Starting over isn't bad.
Sometimes when I'm writing the computer glitches and I lose the whole piece...I want to howl and bonk my forehead on the table (a lot of times I do, the other people in the coffee shop get alarmed). But the funny thing is it's the best thing that could happen. The next draft is cleaner, clearer, and a whole lot faster. My immediate fear is that I won't be able to remember what I was saying, but instead I find that the next draft has more clarity, less fluff, and the piece flows with more powerful emphasis. It's no fluke, this has happened often.
We often hear from people that "they've been gone for so long, and now they have to start over OHH NOOO." But here's the thing, every time you start over, you know more about what not-to-do moving forward. You instinctively strip down this iteration of your experience to the bare essentials. In the absence of "fluff" like not knowing what shoes to wear or wondering where to put the J-hooks for Squats vs Bench Press, the movements and stimulus get clearer. The difference between lifting for strength vs lifting for size will have more shape. The feel of a 12min AMRAP vs a 30min EMOM starts to make more sense. You get faster and more focused, and it's because of subtracting the extraneous, instead of adding more stress.
This has shown up for me in coaching As someone who has taught "the backsquat" a thousand times over the years, I can tell you that with each iteration of teaching, the explanation gets simpler and simpler with time. Instead of diving deeper into angles, timing, and balance shifts, the conversation devolves the other way. Balance. Breathe. Stand up. With each new member, it's a starting over process, and the less there is to say.
If you fear starting over, consider that in doing so your experience is going to be more powerful, not less. You may be starting back at square one, but you understand square one on a deeper level. People who are "advanced" at something have started over in frustration many times, and each time have whittled away another unnecessary step.
If you're starting over now, although it may feel like a step backward, that's just part of the dance.
Your first or second draft is wiped clean. Luck for you, it's your time now to write the real thing.
Best
Josh