Losing all your work by not saving can be slightly soul-destroying.
However, creating something better can be very satisfying indeed.
When you realise that you’ve made an awful error which results in having to start your writing from scratch, it feels as if you’ve suffered a huge setback. However, being forced to reconstruct your masterpiece with a blank canvas can actually be a step forward.
There may be some parts that should actually be removed to improve the piece (but which you’re holding onto because it feels like throwing work away to delete them). When these parts are no longer present, you’re free to re-fashion the piece in any way you see fit, liberated from the restraint of the existing material’s structure.
If you have the discipline, try simulating this situation by putting your first draft to one side and starting again; you may find that your second piece is much leaner, because you’re able to avoid the dead-ends and pitfalls that you made the first time round.
Close without saving?