Kenny Omega is continuing to battle through the lasting effects of his near-fatal health scare, and he’s opening up about the difficult road to recovery.
In a candid interview on Wrestling Observer Radio, the former AEW World Champion discussed how his life and wrestling career have changed since suffering from a severe diverticulitis attack in late 2023 — a condition that sidelined him for nearly a year and required emergency surgery.
Speaking with Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez, Omega agreed that he is not the same in-ring performer he once was. “It’s as you said,” Omega acknowledged, “I feel in the pursuit of just staying at the same pace that the younger, healthier talent are moving at, I feel in situations like that I wouldn’t be able to stand out — or I would stand out in a different kind of way, a negative way.”
He continued, “I try not to bring attention to that. I don’t want people to feel scared or sorry for me, or I don’t want anyone’s opinion of a match to be hampered because I simply just can’t move consistently as fast all the time… There’s still a number of issues I’m working through, and it’s really day to day.”
One of those issues, Omega explained, is the adhesions caused by the surgery — internal scar tissue that binds to his organs and causes significant pain when he exerts himself physically.
“I have these adhesions in my stomach, quite a few. When you’re breathing heavy, when you have to use a lot of core, when you have to twist, when you have to stretch… the adhesions that are binding to my inner organs, they’re pulling apart, and it’s causing a lot of discomfort. Kinda sorta like a lot of flu-like symptoms to emerge.”
Omega said the impact was especially felt after the brutal Anarchy in the Arena match at Double or Nothing. He admitted that the toll left him completely drained.
“It’s not meant to scare anybody… but I’ll be in bed until 5 p.m., 6 p.m. for almost an entire week. I just don’t have the energy, I can’t move,” he said. “That was the most scary part to me.”
Now, Omega is learning to listen to his body and not push himself past his limits — a change in mindset he says Tony Khan fully supports.
As Omega continues to rebuild, his resilience remains evident. While he may be a different version of himself, his passion for wrestling — and his willingness to be honest with fans — is as strong as ever.
Stay tuned to PWMania.com for the latest updates on Kenny Omega and AEW.
