Former West Coast Eagles Category B rookie Patrick Bines has thanked insurance expert Adriana Oreskov and concussion advocate Peter Jess for helping him get his life back on track, as well as begged the AFL to change their head trauma insurance policies.
Bines' short-lived AFL career was devastatingly stopped in its tracks in 2019 after the ruck-forward suffered a severe neck injury during a WAFL game.
The 23-year-old appeared on Fox Footy's On the Couch on Monday, detailing his post-injury mental health pitfall and dangerous self-medication.
"I was at a pretty high dose of opioid medications – like four, five, six times over the limit of a regular adult," he said.
"There as an element of it too, where I was getting some it off the street.
"You can't get that much from a pharmacy or a chemist, it was a pretty dangerous amount – red flags go up in the system.
"I'm not proud of it, I hurt a lot of people along the way including my family and friends.
"(Adriana) sat down with me and put 60 days of 6 am to 8 pm work in, going through all the technical definitions of what I had to meet.
"I am so grateful for her and Peter Jess, now I can start some rehab to get me to the next stage of my life."
Bines delivered a stern warning to the AFL amid a plea for the league to introduce a liable insurance policy.
"Athletes need it – there needs to be a safety net," he said.
"I'm not going to be the last one, unfortunately.
Bines has been afforded a new lease on life after he was awarded a $500,000 lump sum payment from AMP.
"If [Adriana] didn't message me, I'd still be working through the AFL for everything. It's been three years now. It's not about the money, we just need some assistance with rehab."
"I don't want this to happen to another player. It's been hell."
