Been there, done that, got the broken ribs

When, once upon a time, you took a path that led only to brambles and pits, you were muddled and confused while you tried to figure out what happened and how you got there. Then, a moment of epiphany came and you knew you had to get out. You spent some time looking around at how deeply you were tangled and then you went for it. You got yourself out, bloodied and bruised, but free. You ran the opposite direction. You spent time nursing the wounds and found you had some broken ribs and gave yourself time to let those heal.  Then, someone came along who decided that you needed to walk down that path again.  The difference this time was that you knew where it ended. You knew it ended with wounds difficult to heal and you dug in.  Oh, your new comrade tried to coax you into going, then that comrade tried to coerce you into going.  But you knew and you weren't going to land in the confused muddle again. So, you walked away. No one understood, but it was okay because you knew the end already.