After attempting suicide, he decided it was time to give up the contributing factors that led to him hitting rock bottom.

"Drugs and alcohol were a big problem for me," he said.

"February last year I attempted suicide and I've been sober since then.

"You feel a lot better, you're not waking up hungover, not worrying about what you did on the weekend or who you upset, it just takes away a lot of anxiety.

"Using drugs as well, you'd come down from drugs and by the time you come off your come down you're using again so taking that out helps anxiety."

With mental health a significant topic for Mr Essam, he's decided to put that into a project by launching his Bend The Line podcast with episodes delving into his story, providing advice and interviewing various guests with different stories to tell.

"I started it to get stuff off my chest then did one on mental health and it got some traction and that's the road I'll probably go down now, the more people talk about it the better," he explained.

"One of the blokes I'm getting on to do a podcast is from a different perspective; a lot of people use drugs and alcohol when they're suffering from mental health but in his case he doesn't drink.

"He's sober and it'll be interesting to see how he deals with things without it because, for me, I was using that as a form of medication.

"It'll be interesting to have a chat with him - it's always been a problem for me and life's a lot better now I'm sober."

Along with his podcast, Essam has been a big part of Orange CYMS' mental health awareness week.

On Sunday, the week will culminate with both LifeLine Central West and WellWays services coming to Wade Park, with a stall set up providing mental health information and resources.

"We thought we'd use the week to get the mental health message out and use our social media platform to get awareness out there ahead of the weekend and not just do a one off," CYMS president Cam Jones said.

"We've got some people in the club that are very passionate about it."

For Mr Essam, the sporting environment is where he sees an opportunity to make a change.

"I've been making a big push to get it going, it's something I spoke to Cam (Jones) about and I feel if we can start different programs in any sporting clubs it can make a big difference," he said.

"Sporting clubs is a big one, you go back to the pub after the game and grog can lead to some dramas and if you've got a few blokes there that can see signs then you can manage that."

Along with the week's programs and podcasting, Mr Essam wants to ensure the message continues to spread through not just CYMS' ranks but clubs like Orange United Warriors as well.

With 15 members of CYMS already putting their names up for mental health training, Essam is excited to see how far his campaign can progress.

"I'm really proud, Cam's really good, he's jumped on board and I'm trying to organise some training to get a few blokes on board," he said.

"Mental health is hard, it doesn't take much to say something wrong to someone."

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