One of Australia’s best ever batsman has gone in to bat for Men’s health

Matthew Hayden will always be known as one of Australia’s best ever cricketers, but now, as he goes into bat for men’s health, he’s revealing a lot more about the struggles he was dealing with off the pitch.

AUSTRALIAN Cricket icon Matthew Hayden has opened up to shine a light on Men’s Health and the importance of speaking up.

The 48-year-old has been a loud advocate for men’s health since his father was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2014.

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He watched his helplessly as Lawrie fought through the many symptoms of the disease.

Now the father of three has revealed his own challenges, with a hope it encourages men to go to the doctor, seek help and speak up.

“The walls were closing in at a thousand different times during my career with cricket, at times I felt alone and isolated,” Hayden told The Courier-Mail.

“It’s not any disrespect to post traumatic stress disorder, but the symptoms of pressure and professional sport can be very similar to that.

“There was sleeplessness, you can’t think straight, you’re not hungry, you’re erratic, there were so many times during my career when I felt really under pressure.”

Hayden is heading the Every Man Can campaign, which aims to raise awareness the lower life expectancy for men, higher risks of suicide, and premature death during men’s health week.

“It’s a silent disease, it’s not dissimilar to having a sore back, you still can walk but no one can see your pain,” he said.

“When you suffer in silence it creates a very big hole and it doesn’t feel very good, it feels dark.

“The only way you can shed light on it is to actually talk.”

For Hayden, it’s about having the hard conversations because they may not only help you but encourage others to share.

Matthew Hayden has also been raising awareness for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, after his dad Lawrie’s illness. Picture: Richard Walker

“You’ll find out you’re not on your own and that it’s okay to have a problem,” Hayden said

“There’s the cliche of being a man, to be the all problem solving and all powerful.

“But actually, there are times where we don’t have the solution and we don’t know.

“Australian’s love helping people out, so why not start at the front fence and help yourself?”

Hayden has also been raising awareness for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, after his dad’s illness.

“It’s an insipid disease because every 25 minutes one of us are knocked over by it,” Hayden said.

The only way to stay ahead of the curb is to be proactive.

“It’s like going for a run, you’ll never go for a run until you put your sandshoes on, so get to the front door, put your sandshoes on a take a step, be proactive and chances are you’ll be ahead of the curve.”

“It’s not nice, no one wants to get health checks, no one wants to have mental disease, no one wants to lose a job or get divorced but that doesn’t stop the statistics rolling at you.”

“It’s much better to have a net and be well prepared for the game, then to go into the game blind.”