Triple Olympic swimming champion Adam Peaty said he took a break from the sport to halt his "endless search" for rewards but hopes he will be in a better mindset at the Paris Games next year.
The three-time Olympic gold medallist withdrew from the British Swimming Championships last month after citing mental health issues and later admitted he had been on a "self-destructive spiral".
Peaty has spoken previously about periods of depression and problems with alcohol, which he admits worsened last year as he struggled with injury, motivation and the breakdown of his relationship with the mother of his young son.
He remains hopeful of heading to Paris for the 2024 Olympics as he looks for a third straight title in the men's 100m breaststroke but was adamant that doing so would not be a silver bullet for him.
"A good friend of mine said a gold medal is the coldest thing you will ever wear," Peaty told BBC Breakfast. "It's the coldest thing because you think it will fix all of your problems. It will not.
"I took a break because I was on this endless search of a gold medal or a world record and I looked into the future and I said, 'OK, if I do get that is my life fixed or any better?' No.
"So take the time now to really think about who you are, what you want out of life and then get the gold medal.
"Hopefully when I get to the Olympics I will be in a very good mindset, very grateful and most importantly happy."
Peaty, who holds the 50m and 100m breaststroke world records, won two gold medals and a silver at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 before missing the 2022 world championships in Budapest with a foot injury.
"As athletes our brains are wired a little bit differently, we're constantly chasing reward and if we can see that reward we will work extremely hard for that reward," Peaty added.
"For me it was something that I was constantly chasing and constantly doing and I was like, 'I don't want this in my life, I don't really want to do this all the time."
The Summer Olympics takes place from July 26-August 11, 2024, with the Paralympics then being held from August 28-September 8.