Simply looking at a bathtub once put Grant Hackett off a return to the water.
Yet the dual Olympic champion still found the strength on Sunday night to cap one of the great swimming comebacks by earning a 2015 world titles team berth.
Needing a top-six 200m freestyle finish to seal what once seemed an unlikely relay nod, Hackett cruised to fourth in one minute, 46.84 seconds as Cameron McEvoy (1:45.94) defended his national title in one of the greatest fields assembled in Australia.
At 34, Hackett had initially claimed that making the team after just six months' training and a six-year layoff would feel like "winning an Olympic gold medal".
But clearly, his incredible result on Sunday night meant so much more after Hackett reflected on how much he had turned his life around in the past 12 months.
"If you had asked me 10 years ago if the only thing that got me on the team was on the relay it would be bitter disappointment," Hackett said.
"But right now, it is one of the biggest achievements of my life."
Hackett's personal life fell apart last year as he sought treatment for sleeping pill addiction.
Yet, his professional demons went back as far as his last major meet, the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, where he was denied a record third straight 1500m gold medal.
Tunisia's Oussama Mellouli touched out Hackett in China.
"I will be honest. I hated the sport for a long time," Hackett said.
"I got scared getting into a bathtub.
"To discover a love for something that has been such a big part of my life is really pleasing now because I don't walk away with that taste of Olympic silver in my mouth by a few hundredths of a second.
"I can really enjoy the sport for what it is now."
Hackett had been adamant he had not even launched a comeback after entering the 2015 national titles.
But, he allowed himself a moment to reflect on how far he had come in the past year while savouring the remarkable 200m result in which he shaved three seconds off his best time since his return.
"It was a challenging few years and I had to live it pretty publicly," Hackett said.
"One thing I am good at is listening to people around me.
"I never sit there and feel too sorry for myself for too long. I take accountability for my actions - right or wrong.
"I tried to make the best steps forward - that is all I have ever tried to do."
Meanwhile, Mitch Larkin (53.10 PB) claimed the 100m backstroke final in the fastest time in the world this year.
It would have claimed silver at the 2013 world titles.
Emily Seebohm (58.91) held out young gun Madison Wilson (58.94) to win her sixth national 100m backstroke title in seven years.
Taylor McKeown - a Commonwealth Games 200m breaststroke champion - surprised everyone including herself by claiming the 100m title (1:07.07) ahead of defending champion and Glasgow silver medallist Lorna Tonks (1:07.46).
And Chelsea Gubecka (16:23.95) won the 1500m freestyle final.
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