Adelaide wingman Paul Seedsman has spoken for the first time since he was sidelined by concussion in December to provide Crows Members and fans with an update on his recovery.

Paul Seedsman was standing on the eighth tee at the Rosebud Country Club earlier this month when an otherwise ordinary moment he used to take for granted became something for him to savour.

“I was playing golf with two older fellas and I was standing there on the eighth hole, it was a beautiful day and I had no headache, and I thought ‘gee I can’t remember the last time I felt this’,” Seedsman said.

“Getting through a day without a headache or feeling nauseas sounds so simple but they’re the little things now.”

The little things like playing golf pain-free have actually become big things for Seedsman because the 30-year-old has endured some dark days in the past six months since a collision in a marking contest at training sidelined him with concussion.

Concentrating on simple daily tasks has been a challenge, he retreated from socialising which at times was exhausting and often any progress on the training track was followed by a setback.

“It just played with my moods, not wanting to do anything or be around people,” he said.

“But I think it was derived from the constant headaches and nausea, dizziness, all these different factors from the concussion that the place I’d almost seek comfort was laying down.”

Having just returned to Adelaide following a second stint of specialist treatment in Melbourne, Seedsman finds himself in a much better place physically and mentally but no closer to knowing when he may return to football.

He is getting regular work on his neck, back and head to address headache and migraines which are ongoing symptoms of concussion and is gradually resuming physical training, but he will not play this season after being added to Adelaide’s Inactive List along with Captain Rory Sloane who is recovering from knee surgery.

“I’ve had some good relief from that and I’m doing some work with a neuro physio and making some improvements in those areas and I’ve included light weights and running duties again which has been nice,” he said.

“That’s in its infancy stages but I’m going for a lot of walks and playing golf as part of my rehab which also helps my ability to work my ocular motor skills by tracking the ball.

“That’s been the biggest improvement – I’m doing life a lot better and feeling better in myself, I feel a lot more normal.

“I can catch up and go for dinner with my mates and I want to be around people again because for a long period of time there I didn’t – and I couldn’t. I’d struggle to be around people for long periods and engage in conversations.

“I’m not there yet but I almost feel my life away from football and being an athlete is getting a lot closer to normality.

“Then the other ones are slowly starting to come along with it, it’s a fine balance of getting the concussion, physical and mental aspects of my recovery trending forwards.

“And I feel we’ve got a good balance now, albeit a lot slower than I would have wanted, it’s at least progress.”

Seedsman’s injury setback came after a career-best year in 2021 in which he was named in the 40-man All-Australian squad and finished third in Adelaide’s Club Champion Award.

He says the support of his teammates, coaches, medical and high performance staff at West Lakes as well as his friends and family had meant the world to him – even though he couldn’t always show it.

“It was one thing dealing with it but through everyone showing genuine empathy and care they would ask how you’re going and talking about it every day wasn’t great either,” Seedsman said.

“My wife Alice and I spent a lot of time together while she was working from home during Covid and all that so that’s been great.

“But it’s frustrating for them (family and friends) to see as well I guess because some days I wake up and for whatever reason I’m in a mood.

“That’s where the last month since coming to Melbourne and sorting a few different things out I just feel a lot more myself and balanced, I’m not having the highs and lows, I’m able to track along which is a lot better.

“Everyone at the footy club has been so good and so supportive, they just want to see you do better, some of my best mates are my teammates and I talk to them daily.

“I miss the footy club, the training and all the people because I did love having a laugh and stirring the pot.”

He has even missed Adelaide’s Covid compliance officer John Schulz who has been Seedsman’s number one target for fun and games in recent years.

“That’s how I know I haven’t been right because I haven’t felt like calling Schulzy and getting stuck into him. He’s always said ‘Paul you need to find something more important to do than annoy me’ and now I guess he’s right.”

Although sidelined from football, Seedsman was still able to celebrate his wedding in the off-season.

“The lead up was a challenge and I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to enjoy my wedding, that was very real,” he said.

“But whether you put that down to adrenaline or excitement, just having a good day or having some good results with my medication I was able to have a great day.

“But again I probably paid for that for a couple of days afterwards and then in the midst of that getting Covid wasn’t ideal, but funnily enough Covid was one of my best periods and coming out of that I was in a really good place.

“I got a good week or two training block in before it unravelled again.

“There’s been a couple of times I almost thought I was through and I probably progressed too quickly because I had goals and didn’t want to let this year slip away.

“So every time I was feeling good I tried to get as much out of myself as I could, but unfortunately I would pay for it out the other side and every setback I had it didn’t just go back one step and I could rebound out of it, it put me right back to the beginning and I’d go a couple of weeks without being able to run.

“There’s been no rhyme or reason but training and weights, any significant physical exertion has triggered me at times, so that’s why now we are very mindful of slow steps so I can cope with the different facets.”

Seedsman has also appreciated the support of the wider football community and has spoken with Melbourne’s Angus Brayshaw and Sydney’s Paddy McCartin who have overcome concussion injuries in their careers.

“Each time I had a setback mentally it became more challenging too, and it’s a pretty scary thing concussion, you’re seeing and hearing what’s happening to others but there are also cases of people who come through it.

“I’ve been fortunate to speak to Paddy McCartin and Angus Brayshaw who have been able to return to football after significant concussions themselves and I’m very appreciative of them for their time.

“It gives you a bit of hope that you can find your way out, then I talk to a couple of other blokes like my old teammate Jack Frost who unfortunately had to retire from it but it’s been important to get perspective because what I’ve learnt is each case is different and that’s why it’s such a difficult beast to tackle.”

The 132-game wingman and 2015 Anzac Day Medallist will be reintegrated with the Crows’ footy program in coming weeks but will spend the remainder of the year focusing on his recovery rather than returning to play. He remains contracted with the Crows for 2023.

“I’m just looking forward to getting around the team and the club and doing what I can to help off the field in whatever capacity that is,” Seedsman said.

“I haven’t given up, the long-term picture is I want to return to football. I love playing football but first and foremost I want to get life back on track and to be doing the normal things of day to day living.”