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Buckskin86
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Olivea happy NY Giants gave him a second chance
by Mike Garafolo/The Star-Ledger
Monday July 28, 2008
Saed Hindash/The Star-Ledger
Today was Olivea's first chance to talk about his addiction to painkillers.
ALBANY, N.Y. - Shane Olivea's NFL career was almost over a lot sooner than many believed it would be. Last year, he lost his starting spot as the Chargers' right tackle and then, in February, he lost his job completely when San Diego cut him. Finally, news broke that Olivea had been suspended four games for failed a drug test - a ruling that was later overturned when it was determined he didn't receive notification of his failed test because he had checked himself into the Betty Ford Clinic.
Olivea, who signed with the Giants earlier this month, spoke with reporters today and informed them it was painkillers that resulted in his addiction. But apparently, he doesn't regret the experience.
"It was the best thing that's ever happened to me," Olivea said. "I have a new outlook on life, a new appreciation on life and every day is a present and a blessing."
Olivea said he thought he was hiding his addiction better than he actually was. He didn't realize how obvious it was until his friends and family held an intervention in April. "Just like you see on A&E," he said, referring to the network's popular show, "Intervention."
"I mean, the people close around me knew. I mean, I wasn't the same person," he said. "You can hide a lot of things, but your real friends and real family, they know the real you. They saw a major change and thank God they did, and by the grace of God I was able to get my life turned around."
Olivea said the intervention was the turning point for him.
"Seeing my family in my living room ... seeing how hurt they were and the pain I had caused them was pretty humbling and gut wrenching," he said. "The last thing I want to do is hurt the people around me."
Olivea said he doesn't drink anymore and actually never had a big problem with alcohol. But he's trying to keep his system clean of anything that might lead to an addiction. When he goes out now, he's the designated driver.
As for the football field, Olivea's being on the third-team offense would seem like a humbling experience for a player once considered one of the most consistent tackles in the league.
"The fourth unit, first unit, sixth unit, to me, all that stuff will take care of itself," he said. "I mean, I've proven what I can do in this league and like I said, I'm just happy to put on a unifom. I know I'm starting from scratch and ground zero and I'm not going to be handed anything by any means and like I said, I'm just grateful and thankful to put on a uniform again."
Olivea happy NY Giants gave him a second chance - New York Giants Football & NFL Super Bowl News - NJ.com
RNN-TV: New York's Hudson Valley News Authority - National News and Politics -- Giants T Shane Olivea was addicted to painkillers
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Wow. I was unaware the drug problem he was going through. Went to sign onto my AOL account and saw his picture. I knew it looked familiar but the caption threw me off.
http://sports.aol.com/nfl/story/_a/bbdp/giant-comes-clean-on-drug-addiction/
Giant Comes Clean on Drug Addiction
By The Associated Press
AP Sports
ALBANY, N.Y. (July 27) -- Recently signed New York Giants offensive tackle Shane Olivea said Monday that he was addicted to painkillers while playing for the San Diego Chargers last season.
Offensive lineman Shane Olivea, now with the Giants, admitted that his addition to painkillers ruined his career with the Chargers. Find out other sports figures who have had problems with painkillers.
"Vicodin" became a household word in 1996 when former Packers quarterback Brett Favre openly discussed his dependency on the drug, for which he went through rehab.
Patriots starting offensive tackle Nick Kaczur allegedly helped the Drug Enforcement Administration bust a drug dealer in April after Kaczur had been arrested with 202 oxycodone pills.
A media frenzy was created in September of 2006 when it was reported that Terrell Owens tried to kill himself with an overdose of hydrocodone. An angry T.O. denied the allegation and the Dallas Police Department soon called the incident an accidental overdose.
The 26-year Olivea lost his starting job at right tackle in midseason and was eventually released by the Chargers in February, a move he said he asked the team to make.
``It's a second chance in my life and football and I'm just happy to have that opportunity,'' said Olivea, who was signed by the Super Bowl champions on July 10. ``A lot of guys aren't given that opportunity, so I feel very blessed and very fortunate to have that opportunity.''
Olivea said that he did not confront his problem until his family intervened in April, about a week before the NFL Draft. He was treated at the Betty Ford Center in California.
While under treatment, the NFL suspended him for four games for failing to take a mandatory urine test. Olivea said he was never informed he had to take the test. He appealed the suspension and it was rescinded.
A rising star who only two years ago signed a six-year, $20 million contract, Olivea indicated he used prescription pain medication for relief from a number of nagging injuries. He thought he did a good job of hiding his addiction, but he admitted his family noticed changes in him.
``I mean, the people close around me knew. I mean, I wasn't the same person,'' Olivea said. ``You can hide a lot of things, but your real friends and real family, they know the real you. They saw a major change and thank God they did, and by the grace of God I was able to get my life turned around.''
Olivea started 57 of 60 games in his four seasons with the Chargers. He is trying to make a team which is returning all five starters from the Super Bowl.
In the opening days of training camp at the University at Albany, Olivea has been playing with the third-string unit.
``I'm just starting over fresh,'' Olivea said. ``It's a new system, new terminology, new coaching staff, so they're getting accustomed to me every day and I'm getting accustomed to them.''
A Long Island native who played at Ohio State, Olivea said he worked out three times a day to get into shape.
Coach Tom Coughlin said that Olivea provides experience for a line that didn't have a lot of depth at tackle behind starters David Diehl and Kareem McKenzie. ``We are just going to have to see how he does now,'' Coughlin said. ``You know, it's a whole new system. He has been under another system and he has got a lot of things he has to learn. He has to learn them fast, so hopefully he will be able to do that.''
http://sports.aol.com/nfl/story/_a/bbdp/giant-comes-clean-on-drug-addiction/
Giant Comes Clean on Drug Addiction
By The Associated Press
AP Sports
ALBANY, N.Y. (July 27) -- Recently signed New York Giants offensive tackle Shane Olivea said Monday that he was addicted to painkillers while playing for the San Diego Chargers last season.
Offensive lineman Shane Olivea, now with the Giants, admitted that his addition to painkillers ruined his career with the Chargers. Find out other sports figures who have had problems with painkillers.
"Vicodin" became a household word in 1996 when former Packers quarterback Brett Favre openly discussed his dependency on the drug, for which he went through rehab.
Patriots starting offensive tackle Nick Kaczur allegedly helped the Drug Enforcement Administration bust a drug dealer in April after Kaczur had been arrested with 202 oxycodone pills.
A media frenzy was created in September of 2006 when it was reported that Terrell Owens tried to kill himself with an overdose of hydrocodone. An angry T.O. denied the allegation and the Dallas Police Department soon called the incident an accidental overdose.
The 26-year Olivea lost his starting job at right tackle in midseason and was eventually released by the Chargers in February, a move he said he asked the team to make.
``It's a second chance in my life and football and I'm just happy to have that opportunity,'' said Olivea, who was signed by the Super Bowl champions on July 10. ``A lot of guys aren't given that opportunity, so I feel very blessed and very fortunate to have that opportunity.''
Olivea said that he did not confront his problem until his family intervened in April, about a week before the NFL Draft. He was treated at the Betty Ford Center in California.
While under treatment, the NFL suspended him for four games for failing to take a mandatory urine test. Olivea said he was never informed he had to take the test. He appealed the suspension and it was rescinded.
A rising star who only two years ago signed a six-year, $20 million contract, Olivea indicated he used prescription pain medication for relief from a number of nagging injuries. He thought he did a good job of hiding his addiction, but he admitted his family noticed changes in him.
``I mean, the people close around me knew. I mean, I wasn't the same person,'' Olivea said. ``You can hide a lot of things, but your real friends and real family, they know the real you. They saw a major change and thank God they did, and by the grace of God I was able to get my life turned around.''
Olivea started 57 of 60 games in his four seasons with the Chargers. He is trying to make a team which is returning all five starters from the Super Bowl.
In the opening days of training camp at the University at Albany, Olivea has been playing with the third-string unit.
``I'm just starting over fresh,'' Olivea said. ``It's a new system, new terminology, new coaching staff, so they're getting accustomed to me every day and I'm getting accustomed to them.''
A Long Island native who played at Ohio State, Olivea said he worked out three times a day to get into shape.
Coach Tom Coughlin said that Olivea provides experience for a line that didn't have a lot of depth at tackle behind starters David Diehl and Kareem McKenzie. ``We are just going to have to see how he does now,'' Coughlin said. ``You know, it's a whole new system. He has been under another system and he has got a lot of things he has to learn. He has to learn them fast, so hopefully he will be able to do that.''
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Buckskin86
Moderator
Sports
July 29, 2008
Q&A: Olivea's 'second chance' at life
From clear across the country, with little to go on but a line on a crawl across the bottom of a television screen, it didn?t sound good when Chargers right tackle Shane Olivea was suspended for four games for violating the NFL?s drug policy a few months ago. The Long Island kid had already lost his place in the Chargers? starting lineup, now it appeared things were getting worse.
It would?ve been easy - and probably was - to just assume it was another case of a troubled athlete who made stupid choices and ruined his career. But there was more to Olivea's story. There usually is.
The suspension, as you likely know, was eventually overturned and now Olivea is a Giant. A short version of his story appeared in today?s Daily News. You should read that first. Then come back here to read more of what he had to say:
Q: Do you feel like you?ve been given a second chance on you career?
Olivea: Definitely. It?s a second chance on my life. It?s a second chance on football. I?m just happy to have that opportunity. I feel very blessed and very fortunate to have that opportunity.
Q: How are things going for you, personally since you left Betty Ford?
Olivea: Oh, I feel awesome. You know, sometimes you?ve got to get knocked down to get back up. That was definitely the case with me. I?m just very fortunate that I?m here, living, breathing, and able to put on a uniform again. Whatever happens, happens, but the only thing I can control is today.
Q: How far down were you?
Olivea: I just got addicted to a pain medication. By the grace of God I had an intervention by my family and got myself checked into the Betty Ford Clinic. It?s been the best thing that ever happened to me. I have a new outlook on life, a new appreciation of life. Every day is a present and a blessing.
Q: Football players take pain medication all the time. Were you surprised you became addicted? Did you realize it was happening?
Olivea: The people close around me knew something was happening. I mean, I wasn?t the same person. You can hide a lot of things, but your real friends and real family, they know the real you. Obviously they saw a major change, a drastic change. Thank God they did. And by the grace of God I was able to get my life turned around.
Q: When you say you weren?t the same person, what do you think they saw?
Olivea: It wasn?t me. You can hide from a lot of people, but your loved ones and your family, they know you. You can?t hide from them. They know when you?re down and up and everything in between. So I?m just very fortunate I have a very loving, caring family, and I?m very fortunate the Giants gave me this opportunity to prove to myself and prove to the Giant organization that I won?t do anything to embarrass them. I?m ready to contribute in any way.
Q: Were the Chargers supportive, or did they give up on you too quickly?
Olivea: I don?t think they knew the depth of it, of what was really going on. I did a really good job of hiding it, if you will. I also asked for my release. I was going through alot and had to deal with it, and I wasn?t able to deal with it and give the daily attention that football needs to produce and play at a high level. It was outside factors that contributed to me not being able to do that.
Q: You could tell it affected you on the field?
Olivea: Oh, yeah. I got benched. I never sat in my whole life. Thank God I had a real loving family. They helped me out and get my life going again.
Q: How do you handle the future now? You are in a painful profession. Isn?t pain medication just part of your routine?
Olivea: I think there are a lot more avenues I now know of, different kinds of treatment as opposed to just taking a pill. I?m a lot more knowledgeable and more aware of the avenues I can explore.
Q: Was it one specific type of pain medication?
Olivea: Just pain medication. It wasn?t street drugs. I don?t do drugs. I know that was reported.
Q: Was there a defining moment for you in your addiction and recovery?
Olivea: Seeing my family in my living room. Seeing how hurt they were, and the pain I caused them. It was pretty humbling and gut-wrenching. Like I said, it was a hard decision, very humbling and a very difficult thing to do. But people don?t look at alcoholism and addiction as a disease, and alcoholism is a disease just like cancer. I wish people would really learn about it. People just think, ?Oh it?s will power,? but it?s really not. I?d love for people to be able to sit in on a biological or chemical lecture that I?ve had the fortune of sitting in on and learning about. It?s uncontrollable. It?s in your biological DNA. My children are going to be predisposed to it. It?s something I think about, but all I can really do is focus on today, try to be a better person today, be a clean and sober person today.
Q: How do you go out and socialize with the team, then?
Olivea: I tell them I have a disease. I go. I?m the designated driver. It is what it is. I can?t hide. I?m not going to be a hermit. I?ll be the one holding the keys. It really doesn?t bother me. Alcohol really wasn?t my thing, so it?s not a big deal. I?m just trying not to put anything in my system.
Q: Did you know that your family knew about your problems?
Olivea: No, I thought I was doing a pretty good job of hiding it.
The Blue Screen - NY Daily News
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OSUsushichic
Fired up! Ready to go!
Makes you wonder how many of these players are addicted to painkillers. I bet it's pretty high.
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