u/Glittering_Basil_686

Hey all,

38yo male here. Office job and been training BJJ (blue belt) 3-4x a week for the last 4 years and honestly even before BJJ I always had some neck and upper back stuff going on, just never thought much of it.

Around February I started getting this weird pain in my trap, chest and shoulder that I couldn't really explain. Thought it was a strain or something. Then it crept into my bicep and forearm and that's when I got worried. Physio eventually told me to get an MRI done and I got the results back yesterday.

Short version: degenerative disc disease across multiple levels (C3/C4 all the way to C6/C7), a disc herniation at C6/C7 that's touching the spinal cord (no damage yet apparently), and some significant nerve compression on the right side at C5/C6 which explains all the arm stuff.

Got a neurology appointment in three weeks which feels like forever (yep, shitty healthcare system here in EU). From what I've read surgery is probably on the table. My options are realistically a discectomy or discectomy with fusion (ACDF) since disc replacement isn't really done where I live.

Being active (especially BJJ) plays a big role in my life and keeps me sane and I'm genuinely terrified of losing it. Anyone here gone through cervical spine surgery and actually made it back to training? How long did it take, what did your comeback look like, did you have to change how you roll? Anything helps honestly.

Hey all,

38yo male here. Office job and been training BJJ 3-4x a week for the last 4 years and honestly even before BJJ I always had some neck and upper back stuff going on, just never thought much of it.

Around February I started getting this weird pain in my trap, chest and shoulder that I couldn't really explain. Thought it was a strain or something. Then it crept into my bicep and forearm and that's when I got worried. Physio eventually told me to get an MRI done and I got the results back yesterday.

Short version: degenerative disc disease across multiple levels (C3/C4 all the way to C6/C7), a disc herniation at C6/C7 that's touching the spinal cord (no damage yet apparently), and some significant nerve compression on the right side at C5/C6 which explains all the arm stuff.

Got a neurology appointment in three weeks which feels like forever (yep, shitty healthcare system here in EU). From what I've read surgery is probably on the table. My options are realistically a discectomy or discectomy with fusion (ACDF) since disc replacement isn't really done where I live.

Being active (especially BJJ) plays a big role in my life and keeps me sane and I'm genuinely terrified of losing it. Anyone here gone through cervical spine surgery and actually made it back to training? How long did it take, what did your comeback look like, did you have to change how you roll? Anything helps honestly.