Ireland captain Caelan Doris said on Friday he is "mentally stronger" after a six-month enforced break that included having to sit out the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia because of a shoulder injury.
The 27-year-old No 8 makes his first start since recovering from the injury when he leads out his side at Lansdowne Road on Saturday against Japan.
The Leinster star says he "loves" being back in the national set-up and warmed up for the Japan game by coming on as a replacement in the 26-13 defeat by New Zealand in Chicago last Saturday.
"I feel good, definitely feel fresh after quite a long summer," he said at his eve-of-match press conference.
"Kind of took my mind off rugby for a little while. Yeah, I feel mentally stronger."
Doris, who skippered the Irish to the 2024 Six Nations title, said he had taken himself off to the United States while the Lions were winning their series with the Wallabies.
"The second two (Tests) I was doing a bit of a retreat and a digital detox so I didn't have access to the games, but obviously watched them in retrospect," he said.
"It was a funny one because there's obviously the pain of it, but also some of my best mates were over there playing.
"So, I was keen to keep an eye on it at the same time."
Doris has in the past drawn on what he has learned growing up with psychotherapist parents – he himself has a psychology degree – in how he prepares for matches and said a retreat was an ideal way of developing his mental awareness.
"I suppose kind of separating who I am from what I do was a bit of an overarching goal for the period and kind of building more self-awareness and exploration around that kind of thing," he said.
Doris remarked that this sort of soul-searching is impossible when one is playing non-stop.
"It's definitely hard to do when you're playing because it is all encompassing, but that's why I saw this as an opportunity to step away for the first few months in particular and I found it pretty beneficial," he said.
The Irish should brush aside the Japanese, who come into the game on the back of a 61-7 hammering by world champions South Africa.
However, Doris and his team face tougher challenges the following two weekends against Australia and then the Springboks.
Some people have suggested the Irish are on the wane with several players showing their age and a shadow of the outstanding side that achieved the 2023 Six Nations Grand Slam.
Doris admits some performances have been below par but believes Ireland are far from a spent force.
"There have been some positives over the last year or two, we've had some big wins and some big performances but probably been inconsistent," he said.
"There's no lack of belief or doubt in our potential and in what we can do.
"It's just about gettting out and delivering on it."
