Ben Cousins will be rested this weekend as he continues to recover from the sleeping pill drama he admits wiped a day from his mind.

Despite a desperate bid to prove his fitness, Richmond ruled the midfielder out of Saturday night's Etihad Stadium AFL clash with Fremantle.

Coach Damien Hardwick said it was an easy decision, after the 32-year-old spent two days in intensive care.

"At Ben's age, six-day break, been in intensive care, not the ideal preparation," Hardwick said.

"He was very disappointed when I told him he wasn't going to play.

"But for the good of the Richmond Football Club and the good of Ben's health, physically-wise, it wasn't a hard decision to make."

Cousins, who spoke briefly with reporters on Wednesday, gave more detail of the incident on Thursday in an interview with radio station Nova 100 FM, where he has a weekly reporting role.

He said his first memory of the episode was waking up in hospital on Tuesday morning, not knowing what day it was.

Cousins denied he had been drinking when he took the medication and said he took about double the normal amount, although he said it was his first time using that particular medication.

He described it as "not your typical sleeping tablet", saying his drug-abuse history contributed to the choice of medication prescribed to him.

"Those other ones you can take too many and have a bit of fun on them. This thing, there is no fun with these," he said.

He said after his girlfriend was unable to wake him on Monday morning, she called club doctor Greg Hickey, who decided to check him into hospital.

When he awoke on Tuesday, he thought it was still Monday and asked to see former West Coast teammate and now St Kilda ruckman Michael Gardiner, whose 31st birthday was on Monday.

"They asked what visitors do you want - my girlfriend, club doctor and Micky Gardiner - it is a Monday, he has got a recovery session, so surely he can come by," Cousins said.

"They said `Sorry mate, it is Tuesday.' That is one day I am not going to get back."

While the AFL have said it is extremely rare for players to take caffeine and sleeping pills, Hardwick echoed the view of others in the industry that their use was widespread.

He said the combination was a regular part of some senior Tigers' match-day routines, a practice the club will continue to allow.

"It's a personal decision because it is legal within AFL circles," he said.

But World Anti-doping Agency president John Fahey said caffeine might soon be back on the banned list.

"If there is the suggestion that popping some pills before you run onto the field will actually make you play better, well what is that saying to the kids?" Fahey told Melbourne's SEN radio.

"I will say that it will be reviewed in September."

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