It's always good to get a good hiding in the market. Makes you a better investor. My first harsh lesson was 1987. After October 1987 I blew up most of my portfolio.
Then the tech crash ironically led me to my first 50 bagger..... DTL. There was fear in the market and blood on the streets. My prior experience helped me to realise that when fear and blood abounds it is exactly the right time to be aggressive once you find the right business. I still shake my head at how I could buy a business with around $40M in revenues, no debt and a market cap of $4M. I did however and sold out prior to the 10 for 1 split many years later. That was the life changer. It gave me the freedom and capital to do this full time.