Ian Thorpe's father hopeful Olympic champ will battle health issues in six months

The father of Australian swimming legend Ian Thorpe has revealed that his son was getting the help he needed with his medication.

The five-time Olympic gold medallist was found by police in a disorientated state, sitting in a white Toyota Starlet parked in the driveway of a home near his parents' house in Panania about 3 a.m. on Monday.

Ken Thorpe said his son is battling with his health issues at the moment and he is having a tough time, and hoped that in six months' time he will be out the other side.

Thorpe is now back in rehab where he is being treated for depression, Telegraph.com.au reports.

The Olympic champion's manager, James Erskine, said Thorpe had been wandering Paul St disoriented on a mixture of anti-depressants and painkillers for an injured shoulder when he sat in a car he thought belonged to a friend named Christian.

Thorpe had been receiving treatment for depression and had since gone home to stay with his parents after being admitted to a Sydney hospital to fight his decade-long battle with depression and alcohol abuse.