The AFL world has wrapped their collective arms around Fremantle midfielder Nathan O’Driscoll after his emotional revelation about his mental health battles, which included times where he thought about taking his own life.

O’Driscoll shocked the industry with his brave and honest post on Instagram, which revealed he had struggled with anxiety for the past four years.

The 23-year-old’s heartbreaking confession also revealed that there was “three separate times where I’ve been extremely close to committing suicide”.

There was an overwhelming response to O’Driscoll’s post, with several of his current and former teammates commenting with love hearts and comments to let the Northam product know how they had his back.

“Love you mate,” vice-captain Caleb Serong posted.

“Always here drizz,” wingman Jeremy Sharp wrote.

Fremantle footy boss Joe Brierty said the club was “incredibly proud” of O’Driscoll for speaking openly about his struggles.

“This is a struggle many in our society deal with daily, and often silently, so it’s an important conversation as our industry continues to evolve the mental health framework in place to support our people,” he said in a statement.

“While football is a high-performance environment, our priority will always be supporting our people.

“Our mental health and well-being team will continue to work very closely with Nathan to provide him with the support that he needs, while he also receives strong support from his family, friends, teammates and the broader Club.”

Some of the Dockers’ AFLW stars — who Nathan’s sister Emma plays for — also voiced their support, including Kiara Bowers and Ebony Antonio.

His younger brother Aiden — who was forced to retire from the AFL before he even played a game for the Western Bulldogs — also showed his public support.

“We all love you Nath. I’ll always be here for you, the best big brother anyone could ask for,” he wrote. “You’re such a good person, bro.”

Even the cross-town rivalry was put aside, with West Coast’s official Instagram page commenting with a purple love heart.

O’Driscoll posted on Instagram: “I wasn’t going to post this, but with the recent focus on mental health around the league, it feels like the right time. Over the past four years, I’ve had some incredible highs, but also some very low moments. I’ve struggled with anxiety, a constant need to feel like I belong, and always putting others before myself.

“There have been times when I’ve fallen into deep depressive states and three separate times when I’ve been extremely close to committing suicide. No one is there to judge you, every person I’ve opened up to has supported me in ways I never expected.

“From the outside, it might look like I have everything, but what’s going on internally can be a very different story. Everyone is dealing with something, and it’s okay to not be okay.”

O’Driscoll’s emotionally charged admission comes on the back of widespread calls for the AFL to implement a mental health round to raise awareness.

Carlton’s Elijah Hollands was recently hospitalised after he had a mental health episode during a football game against Collingwood, which has led to an AFL investigation.

West Coast’s Brady Hough and Liam Baker both backed calls for the mental health round to be introduced after Geelong superstar Bailey Smith — who also had his own mental health issues — called for it in an unprompted post-game interview.

“I don’t know if I’m out of pocket saying it, but I think it’s about time the AFL get a men’s mental health round,” Smith said after his side’s win over Western Bulldogs earlier this month.

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