"I nearly couldn't run out after half-time, I was that exhausted. "It took maybe until 10 minutes in the third quarter to go out and get going again. I felt like I was going to pass out. It was something I had never experienced before so I knew something wasn't right." Going through the motions: Heath Grundy says he felt like a "zombie" against Essendon. Credit:AAP Several days later, the Swans announce he is taking two weeks off to "focus on his mental wellbeing". This was several months in the making for Grundy, who had been experiencing anxiety – a condition made worse by a lack of sleep since his second son, Jameson, was born in February.

Jameson has reflux, which affects his sleep. Since round one, the longest his baby boy has slept, Grundy says, "is two or three hours straight, two or three times". Loading "And the rest he sleeps for [is] about 20 minutes, an hour, and he's up again," Grundy says. Grundy tried sleeping in another room to no avail. He wanted to be a good father and good husband, and help. At times it meant taking Jameson out for walks at 3am so his baby could get some sleep, and also his wife, Elise. "The novelty wore off pretty quickly," Grundy says with a laugh. "It was ridiculous, it was getting a bit out of hand. I'd be up walking around the street trying to get him to settle because he wouldn't bloody settle."

Grundy thought he could battle through week by week but by mid-season the effect of four or five hours' sleep a night began to take its toll. Tired, his form fell away. He played in the reserves for the first time in 10 years. Then came the stress about his future. Being out of the team and out of contract at the end of the season is far from ideal for a 32-year-old. "Probably anxiety is the word I can relate to a little bit," Grundy says. "The kids at home, a lack of sleep, what I'm going to do, not playing great footy, career after footy, all those things play on your mind. Milestone: Heath Grundy is chaired off the field by teammates after his 250th game. Credit:AAP "Everything amplifies a bit, you start worrying about more and more things."

The Essendon game was a turning point for Grundy, who realised something had to change. He told the club of his home situation. Coach John Longmire, who has been vocal in raising awareness of mental health in the AFL, was supportive, publicly praising his player for recognising he needed help. Loading In the past month, Grundy has slept most nights at his in-laws' house. They also live in Maroubra. "It's been quite fortunate, I've been able to duck off there when the kids are asleep and get some more sleep," Grundy says. "It wasn't until I had a week's normal sleep that I started to realise it was the sleep that was getting to me. It's certainly made a difference."

If he could have his time over again, Grundy would "absolutely" have acted earlier, though he appreciates how much harder it is now for Elise. "It's always easy to look back and say, 'I should have done this, I should have done that'. I was trying to do too much at home and at footy," Grundy says. "Like I do, I think I can push through things and get it done. It sounds stupid but I didn't think sleep would have that much effect on me on game day. Loading "You know what it's like, you try and be the best dad, help out and do what you can. In some ways you're actually making the problem worse."