CRONULLA legend Andrew Ettingshausen has issued a simple but strong message to anyone struggling with stress or depression - keep your family close.

Once rugby league’s poster boy, Ettingshausen hit rock bottom in 2012 when he revealed he had been diagnosed with depression and contemplated suicide.

Some business ventures had hit him hard financially, and in 2010 he engaged in an affair with former teammate Paul Mellor’s wife.

It was a long way down for the man who had represented NSW and Australia, been the face of Australian rugby league, and later forged a successful television career on the back of his sporting feats.

Round 19

But he made it out the other side, and opened up on On The Couch With Sterlo on Wednesday night.

Andrew Ettingshausen in action for Cronulla. Source: News Limited

“It was a three-year period really of a couple of financial losses in two businesses that I had, and an accumulation of the stress and the depression I went through in that period,” Ettingshausen told host Peter Sterling.

“It was a horrible time. I was sleeping about four hours a night, and I had so many problems I started to put them away in boxes up here (in my head) and compartmentalise my life so they were blocked out and I could actually operate.

“My life was in turmoil, and I guess when you’re not caring about anything in the world anymore you make some pretty poor decisions.

“I did certainly make some very bad decisions at that time.

“But since then life has been on the up, I had a lot of treatment.”

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Ettingshausen spent 12 months in therapy and worked tirelessly to mend his relationship with wife Monique.

It was during his darkest hour he admits he “pushed” his family away, and urged others not to handle the situation as he did.

“I guess I learnt a thousand things through that period,” Ettingshausen said.

“When you’re in that state of mind where you’re under enormous stress and the pressures of life are getting too much, it’s a key thing not to push your family away.

“That’s sort of what I did at that time.

“I felt they couldn’t help me, there were all these business problems that were going on that they couldn’t solve, so I basically started to shut them out of my life.

Singer Tina Turner with players (L-R) Allan Langer, Andrew Ettingshausen and Wayne Pearce during filming of the 'Simply the Best' advertising campaign. Picture: Peter Muhlbock. Source: News Corp Australia

“In doing that I created a great divide that should never have been there.

“If anybody is ever in this situation, or in a situation of stress, please don’t ever shut your family out and the people that really love you and really care for you.

“They’re the ones who are going to make that big difference in your life, they are the ones who are going to save you.”

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