Jung isn't simply saying that growth hurts—he's arguing something more unsettling: that awareness itself *requires* suffering. You cannot become conscious of your own shadows, your prejudices, your mortality without first experiencing the discomfort of seeing what you'd rather ignore. This explains why people often prefer comforting delusions to difficult truths, and why genuine self-knowledge feels so costly. When someone finally admits a marriage isn't working, or confronts a long-buried family secret, the pain isn't incidental to gaining clarity—it's woven into the very texture of understanding itself.