So after he watches his North Melbourne teammates take on Collingwood in round one next Sunday at Etihad Stadium, Harvey is going to take his young family up to the "middle of nowhere" on the Murray River for three or four days.
Harvey told AFL.com.au that North coach Brad Scott had approached him about getting away from the club, knowing how footy mad he remains at 34.
Harvey knows he'll need to take his mind off football over the coming weeks to maintain his typical upbeat attitude.
"I'm going to be absolutely terrible sitting in the stands in round one, knowing that I'm 100 per cent fit and should be out there helping my teammates and helping our footy club," Harvey said.
"But the couple of days afterwards will be just as bad, coming to training when the boys are pulling up sore and knowing they've played a game of football. And then there's the media side of it and how much the game's spoken about.
"I just know it would do my head in not being out there. So I just want to get away from everything so I don't have to mope around and have the 'sads' for four or five days."
Harvey said he would not turn on the TV or read a paper while he was away. He will go for a couple of runs to keep his fitness up, but otherwise will enjoy a rare chance to get away with his family during the football season.
He expects to come back refreshed and throw himself into training in the lead-up to his projected return in round seven against the Western Bulldogs.
Harvey's had only other one lengthy stint on the sidelines during his 17-year AFL career, when he missed seven weeks with an elbow injury in 2009.
Harvey plans on doing extra mentoring work with young players which has previously proved not only rewarding but helped time out of the game pass more quickly.
"I think because I didn't have to concentrate on my own game so much I could give the other guys so much more time," Harvey said.
"You always like to do that anyway but when you're not playing you don't have to go over your game tapes or anything like that, so you find an extra hour in the week just to help someone else out.
"I really enjoyed helping the younger guys, sitting down and watching their vision, hopefully trying to give them some pointers.
"I'm hoping I can do something similar in the next eight weeks."
North skipper Andrew Swallow told AFL.com.au this week that a mentoring role would be perfect for Harvey during his suspension.
"It would be great to see him working with guys like Leigh Adams, Kieran Harper, and Benny Speight, guys who are going to play his sort of forward/midfield role coming into the future," Swallow said.
Harvey believes Harper, who has played 37 games and kicked 37 goals in his first two seasons, is ready to step us in his absence.
"I just reckon he's ready to go after the pre-season he's had." Harvey said.
"He's much stronger now, he looks quicker, he's finding a little bit more of the ball.
"You add all that sort of stuff up and hopefully without me being there he gets a little bit more game time and I reckon he can be one who really grabs the opportunity and runs with it.
In his three NAB Cup games this year, Harvey showed he had lost none of the speed or tricks that have carried him to a record five North best and fairests.
And after being given an extra three-week break at the end of last year's off-season, Harvey did not miss a single pre-season training session.
"I've been up and about over the pre-season, the body's still feeling good," he said.
"I'm just can't wait to get back out on the ground in the real stuff again."
Brent Harvey is a forward/midfielder in NAB AFL Fantasy. He averaged 87.7 points in 2012. Register your team at our AFL Fantasy Hub.
Nick Bowen covers North Melbourne news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Nick
