Seth Rollins Opens Up About Heartbreaking Cost Of Chronic Pain

“It’s coming along. It’s coming along. I had surgery about almost three months now. So, I can do most normal things, like wash my hair and scratch my armpit and all those things. So, it’s good. I still got time. I don’t know exactly when we’re gonna come back but, I’m making progress in the right direction.”

The conversation eventually steered toward the effect that debilitating injuries can have at home. While Rollins had his arm was a sling for the better part of six weeks, he said he remained mostly self-sufficient.

The multi-time World Champion revealed that he actually has more trouble with the chronic, nagging injuries than he does with the headline grabbers.

“Last year, my neck was destroying me. That was really bad. I had the low back stuff... when I was World Heavyweight Champion for the first time. That was a really rough stretch, where I would land wrong like one time and I felt like I couldn't do anything for weeks. That was a struggle."

Seth Rollins really was hurting last summer, it just wasn't his knee

Seth Rollins famously faked a knee injury at Saturday Night's Main Event this past July. Only a handful of people were in on the angle, and he spent three weeks walking on crutches in order to successfully pull off his surprise Money in the Bank cash-in at SummerSlam, which has since been dubbed the 'Ruse of the Century'.

The entire ordeal will be chronicled in WWE: Unreal Season Two, which premieres on Tuesday, January 20 on Netflix. But just because Rollins spent weeks pretending to be injured, doesn't mean he wasn't in some serious pain. He detailed to Complex News just how bad his neck was last year.

"During the summer last year… I couldn’t go 30 seconds without fidgeting. I had to get in a different position, I had to jam my thumb into my neck. I mean, it was not fun and then I had to try to go to work and wrestle and be normal and stuff like that."

Finding a way to power through the pain and still perform at a high level is what Rollins does best. Never once in his career has he called off from wrestling due to a nagging injury. As long as he can physically go, he'll put on a show for the fans.

The real difficulties come at home, when sometimes a battered, bruised and injured Seth Rollins isn't able to play with his young daughter.

"Seeing her disappointed is the worst feeling in the world. I can get through wrestling stuff, whatever. But seeing my daughter disappointed and the sadness on her face, because daddy can’t pick her up, that hurts. That sticks with you.”

As a man with chronic back problems, and a father of two young children who love to roughhouse, I can personally attest — he's not lying.