Barret Robbins

• Robbins was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in the days following Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003, after being hospitalized following the episode that caused him to miss the game. His agent publicly announced the diagnosis shortly afterward. [1]
• In his first extensive public interview later that year, Robbins said he had experienced similar episodes for more than a decade without having previously been diagnosed. [3]

• Robbins described experiencing pronounced shifts between mania and depression for years before he was diagnosed. During the episode before Super Bowl XXXVII, he disappeared from the Raiders for nearly 24 hours and later said he believed the game had already been played and that Oakland had won. He was hospitalized and missed the Super Bowl. [3]
• He also described longstanding heavy alcohol use and reflected on the damage his drinking had caused in his family and professional life. [3]

• After his 2003 diagnosis, Robbins spent 30 days at the Betty Ford Center, where he was treated for alcohol abuse and received medication for bipolar disorder. He said that after leaving treatment he was seeing a therapist twice a week and a psychiatrist twice a month. [3]

• After treatment in 2003, Robbins returned to the Raiders and said he was sober for the first time in about 15 years. He described continuing psychiatric care and treatment as central to maintaining his health. [3]

• Robbins spoke openly about bipolar disorder after his diagnosis, describing the illness as “real” and saying that his concern about experiencing another episode extended “above and beyond football” because it concerned his life. [3]

“It’s a battle within your head. It’s not an easy thing to deal with.”

— Barret Robbins [4]