David Shillington played his first National Rugby League match in 2005.
The former Canberra Raiders captain and Kangaroos prop says attitudes towards mental health have changed in the sport since he made his debut.
"In the early days when I was playing, you'd be pretty frightened to admit you're having some mental-health problems. You'd probably feel like you'd be judged as well. But just in the last couple of years in particular, the whole environment's changed, and people are really looking after themselves better and are more aware of looking after each other better as well. So, I know it's a much better culture than it was."
Shillington retired last year, and, now, he has become a State of Mind project officer.
The initiative, aimed at addressing mental-health issues within the NRL and the wider community, is operating in partnership with leading health organisations such as Headspace.
Kristen Douglas is Headspace's national manager of school support.
"I think what they're doing is a really great approach, because they're going from grassroots through to the elite level. They're trying to promote mental-health messaging, they're using ambassadors to look at really good behaviours, they're talking a lot of, you know, positive messaging in the media. They're really leading the way, and other codes are jumping on board."
The NRL's health manager, Jessica Macartney, says the State of Mind program is delivering results.
"We know that our community has ... 80 per cent of people haven't had any mental-health training or awareness, and so we knew that there was an unmet need. We do that training now, and we've seen the results, the 72 per cent less perceived stigma around mental illness, people reporting much more confidence in terms of supporting someone who is suicidal or who's experiencing mental-health stress. We've seen 97 per cent of people more likely to seek professional help for themselves if they're experiencing an issue now. So those are all really positive results from the pilot."
David Shillington retired from Rugby League just last year.
He says the initiative is already making a difference.
"The NRL delivers a lot of programs, but something like this, it's really impacting so many lives that the response we get on social media and face-to-face with people, congratulating the NRL or the ambassadors on the work they're doing, I think that's an indicator of how much society realises the size of the issue."
There are currently 29 ambassadors but just one State of Mind recognised club.
That number is set to increase over the coming years.
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