I have a hard time imagining the courage it would take for me to make similar emotional disclosures in a place like this if they were my own.

Not as much as you might think. Bear in mind that by the time anybody reads anything I've written about something like that, it's no longer the least bit emotional for me -- it has become an interesting anecdote about something "once upon a time".

If it was still emotional for me after I made the changes, I would have more trouble sharing it, here or even with my subscribers. In fact, the reason I cut off the post where I did was because there was some stuff I wasn't yet "done" with and wanted to work on some more.

Likewise, it's a lot easier to admit to your failures and shortcomings if you are acutely aware that 1) "you" aren't really responsible, and 2) you can change. It's easier to face the truth of what you did wrong, if you know that your reaction will be different in the future. It takes out the "feeling of being a bad person" part of the equation.