Jim Ross Gives Health Update, Believes He Was Concussed After Bad Fall

Jim Ross detailed the circumstances of his bad fall ahead of the debut of AEW Collision and provided a health update for his fans.

June 17th marked the debut of AEW Collision, a show that featured the return of CM Punk for the first time since All Out. Ahead of the broadcast, it was announced that Jim Ross, Kevin Kelly, and Nigel McGuinness would serve as the commentary team for the show.

However, on the morning of the 17th, Jim Ross suffered a bad fall in his home that left him with a severe black eye. He still managed to travel to Chicago for AEW Collision, but after the broadcast, announced that he would be stepping away from the commentary desk to take time to heal.

Speaking on the latest episode of Grilling JR, Jim Ross opened up about the circumstances of his fall and admitted that traveling to AEW Collision wasn’t a wise move as he likely suffered a concussion.

“I’m feeling pretty good. You know, I think I’m getting better every day. I just had a string of bad luck, health wise, which is very unusual for me because, knock on wood, I’ve been very blessed with good health. But when you get to be 71, and you’re trying to live a young man’s life in a young man’s business and going on the road every week, it can get very challenging. So that’s kind of what I found myself in that situation.

“But what happened was, you know, it’s a hell of a story, at least it was for me. I got up and not unlike a lot of other people, I had to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, so I hopped out of bed to go to my bathroom, and apparently I tripped over my CPAP cord. And when I did, I fell face-first into the end table next to my bed and the corner of it hit over here somewhere.

“So I had a huge knot immediately, eye swelled shut almost immediately. But I was so sleepy and so out of it that I just got back in bed. I think I actually went to the bathroom. Mother Nature won that match, and then I got back in bed.

“And then the next morning, when I woke up, that was my flight out to Chicago to do that first show that we’re talking about here, Collision, and that’s all I was thinking about. I woke up and I had a badass headache. But okay, a headache ain’t gonna keep JR out of work. But I had a bad headache, which was a result of the concussion. And my only thought was, ‘I gotta finish packing and get on the road.‘

“That’s kind of what I did, but I was very unstable. Everything was very foggy, and I’d have been better off staying at home period, but hard-headedness and being stubborn, and I felt like I had a commitment that I’d made that I wanted to fulfill.

“So I got dressed rather slowly. And my driver, I have the same driver that drives me to the airport [and] picks me up, brings me home every week, he knows if I’m not standing there ready to go, to come upstairs where I live. But I was downstairs waiting and on a little unsteady ground, and flew to Chicago.”

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Continuing, Jim Ross noted that the fall greatly affected his performance on AEW Collision and explained how he came to the realization that he needed to take time off. He also revealed that he’s been using a cane around the house to prevent any future falls.

“And as the day went on in Chicago, my voice kept going in and out, and I don’t know what the hell that was. I thought, ‘Well, I’ll get over it. I’ll drink a lot of hot tea or hot coffee or whatever — hot something, and make that work for me.’ But it was just too much to overcome. And I apologize for how I sounded. I didn’t intend to sound that way. I didn’t want to sound that way. And I know I disappointed a lot of people. I disappointed me. I don’t think it made anybody in AEW real happy how I sounded, but I was doing the best that I could.

“So after that show was over, I went back to the announcers’ locker room, where we all dress, all of us, collectively, a little community place, and I sat there for a little bit and thought, ‘Man, I can’t keep doing this. I don’t feel good. Something’s not right. I got here, I did the best I could. But boy, I need to get home.’

“So good old Rafael Morffi, who’s taken care of me so much on the road over the years, helped me get back to the hotel. I tucked myself in, and I didn’t even get undressed that night. I wanted to make sure I could not waste any time making that flight the next morning. So I flew home, headache and all, and I’ve been here ever since.

“I’ve been out of the house a few times to go to Publix, go to the grocery store, maybe two or three times in the last several weeks. Other than that, I’ve got people that are helping me get groceries or whatever I need, prescriptions, things like that. But I was too unsteady to drive and sure as hell too unsteady to walk around a grocery store. So I had my housekeeper buy me a little cane, which I’m embarrassed to say I’ve used a little bit, not outside, but here in the house to help me get around so I don’t have any more falls.”

While Jim Ross is on the mend, he doesn’t yet have a planned date for his return to AEW television. Ross praised Tony Khan for his patience and encouragement when it comes to his health.

“But as far as going back on the road, I don’t have a return date. Tony Khan’s been very nice as far as, ‘Take all the time you need, and if you want to take several weeks off or the summer off, or whatever you’d like to do, just get healthy.’ So I appreciate the fact that he’s being patient with me and that he is encouraging my good health because that’s really the main thing, and it gives us all an eye-opener.

“There’s nothing more important than our health. And so many times, we take it for granted. I have for years. So I’m gonna be a little bit more aware of my health, I’m gonna be a little bit more aware of how I take care of myself, but in the meantime, I’ve been here at home.”

Everyone at TJR Wrestling sends our best wishes to Jim Ross as he continues to recover from this health setback.

h/t F4WOnline