Damien Duff knows it is good to talk after revealing he gets professional help to deal with the stress of management.
By his own admission, the Ireland legend didn’t want to take on the senior Shelbourne job this time last year.
He was scared about stepping out of his comfort zone and into the unknown.
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But he eventually took the plunge when he realised he had to practise what he preached to his Shels underage side and his own kids.
A year on, Duff is standing on the cusp of glory.
Having kept Shels in the top flight in their first year back in the Premier Division, they face into an FAI Cup final against Derry City today.
But Duff revealed how he has had to take measures to calm down and take a break from the 24/7 demands of management - or risk further burnout.
Pep Guardiola has opened up in the past about why he needed to step away from the pressures of the game in between leaving Barcelona and joining Bayern Munich.
And he has often alluded to further time out of the game to recharge the batteries when he leaves Manchester City.
Duff said: “I’m not comparing Shelbourne to Man City or me to him, it's worlds apart but I’ve thought of him quite a few times this season and understood.
“Before managing, I never understood why, now I absolutely do. For me it's like the TV show ‘All or Nothing’.
“It's something I’ve tried to address in the last two months, because it did become too much for me. So I understand, I burned out many, many times this season.”
Duff continued: “I spoke to someone and I see them every week now. Just ratchet it down and turn down whatever you want to call it.
“I went and spoke to someone as it came to a moment. I would be very self-aware of myself as a coach/manager and my body.
“It came to a point where I said, you need to calm down here, take a step away.
“Not from the job, I have worked too hard - and I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing - but I had no balance with it.
“Even people from afar that don't see me that often would see interviews after games and say, are you alright, you look angry.
“I felt like I was running on anger a lot. Maybe it's the league and dealing with people around the league that brings it out in you.
“But I did feel angry and really emotional for a lot of the season. I have changed. You can't run on adrenaline and fumes and anger.
“It's not a way to live your life but that's absolutely what it was. It's not right.”
Duff has spent this week trying to keep a lid on his players’ emotions going into today’s Aviva Stadium finale.
But who keeps the manager in check?
“Nobody ever asks the manager how you are,” he said with a smile. “Dan Carr walked by me the other day and asked, are you alright gaffer?
“I was like yeah, but no one ever asks the manager how he is. I have had to learn and that's been a big learning point. I’ve got better at it, working better, being more clever.”
Win or lose, Duff has booked a foreign family holiday for after the cup final. He joked that the school won’t be happy about taking his son and daughter out for 10 days.
His wife, Elaine, is writing a book and needs a break too.
Duff said: “She’s in the same boat as me. She’s 24/7 as well, but she’s the clever one in this relationship.
“But I don't think you can turn your phone off. If you turn it off for five hours you get hit with a wave of messages when you turn it back on so you may as well chip away at it.
“I’ve definitely (started) turning off WhatsApp for an hour a day.”
But behind it all, Duff has no regrets about taking the plunge into senior management - and certainly not with a trophy on offer today.
“It keeps me young, to be honest,” he added.
“It keeps me focused, jumping out of bed in the morning, being out in the fresh air and running around a pitch working with young guys, that's not going to age you, is it?
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