The Black Sabbath rocker suffered spinal damage due to a fall in 2019 that aggravated injuries from an ATV crash in 2003
Ozzy Osbourne on ‘road to recovery’ as he leaves hospital in a wheelchair with wife Sharon following ‘major operation’
Ozzy Osbourne, 73, was seen wearing black sweats and a long-sleeved shirt with hospital bracelets on his wrists as a medical professional guided the way following his surgery.
Ozzy Osbourne said this week that he’s heading in for his fourth and "final surgery" on his neck, related to a fall in 2019 that aggravated his injuries from a 2003 ATV accident.
"It is gonna be the final surgery, because I can't do it anymore," the 74-year-old rocker told his family on the Wednesday episode of "The Osbournes" podcast. "Regardless of the way it ends up after tomorrow, I'm not doing it anymore. I can't."
Osbourne joked that after so many surgeries to fix his chronic pain "it’s just like going in for a haircut now."
"Just a spine cut," son Jack Osbourne joked.
OZZY OSBOURNE'S SON JON REVEALS WHAT ROCKER REFUSES TO DO AS GRANDPARENT
Ozzy Osbourne said he's going in for his final surgery related to spinal problems this week. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
The "Crazy Train" singer noted that he has "improved somewhat, I think," but feels like he has "bricks tied" to his feet when he walks.
"I walked upstairs today and downstairs for the first time in a while, and my feet feel like I've got diving boots on when I'm walking," he told his family. "I think it's the nerves."
He added that maybe it would help if he just walked around the "block a few times" but he's concerned the "paps are waiting to ambush me everywhere" and write some story about how "'Ozzy’s on his last legs!’ I’m far from being on my last legs."
Daughter Kelly Osbourne called those kinds of headlines "ageist and insulting and rude."
He answered, "I used to worry about my life ending far more when I was younger than I do now. I don’t know why." Then he laughed, "because I know it’s going to end soon."
Ozzy Osbourne says he's been in pain since he took a fall in his bedroom in 2019. (Daniel Knighton/Getty Images)
He added that he still thinks of himself as a "young guy," and Jack noted that he just attended Willie Nelson’s 90th birthday party, so he could have many years left.
After saying that musician Jeff Beck died in his late 70s, Ozzy added that he doesn’t "think about my own age."
"You shouldn’t," Jack answered. "I think when people spend too much time thinking about their age, that kind of becomes their age."
Ozzy responded, "I tend not to hold on to worries so much anymore."
In the previous episode, Ozzy said he's going in for an epidural because doctors found his "neck has been fixed," but "below the neck there’s two vertebrae where the bike hit me [in 2003] and disintegrated. There’s nothing left of them."
Ozzy Osbourne was forced to cancel several shows this year due to his health struggles. (Christie Goodwin/Redferns via Getty Images)
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While debating about exactly what procedure would be done for his vertebrae, he said, "All I know is right now I’m in a lot of pain, I’m in a lot of discomfort."
His wife Sharon added that his doctor is getting a second and third opinion.
"In my back, the two discs and the muscles on my shoulders have separated from my skeleton, and that’s why I lean forward as it’s like gravity is bringing my head forward," Ozzy explained before adding that he realized, "I’ve walked like that all my life."
Ozzy explained in the episode that he had been returning to his bedroom after a nighttime trip to the bathroom when he had his fall in 2019.
"I misjudged the bed and I missed it and I landed flat on my face. I hit the ground so hard I just lie there. I went smack on the floor, face down," he said.
"But Daddy didn’t put his hands out," Sharon told Jack and Kelly.
Ozzy added, although he wasn’t in pain, he knew he had "done some damage. He said Sharon asked, "What are you doing down there?’ I said, ‘I think I broke my f------ neck."
Ozzy Osbourne was candid with his family about his health struggles on their podcast this week. (Zak Hussein/Corbis via Getty Images)
Earlier this year, the rocker canceled his 2023 tour dates, saying he is "physically weak" from his three surgeries, and he pulled out of October's Power Trip festival in July.
"My original plan was to return to the stage in the summer of 2024, & when the offer to do this show came in, I optimistically moved forward," he wrote on social media at the time. "Unfortunately, my body is telling me that I’m just not ready yet and I am much too proud to have the first show that I do in nearly five years be half-a----."
