Brian O'Driscoll tonight revealed that surgery was the only solution to the trapped nerve that was troubling his everyday life.
The Ireland captain will miss most of the season after being ruled out for six months with the shoulder problem that has afflicted him for the past year.
Next week O'Driscoll will go under the surgeon's knife with the recovery time preventing him from participating in the RBS 6 Nations.
And depending on how Leinster perform in the Heineken Cup and RaboDirect PRO12 League, he may have little opportunity to play in April or May - even if his rehabilitation progresses as hoped.
The 32-year-old was clearly operating below full throttle during the recent World Cup and after seeking expert advice it was decided he required an operation.
"It's a trapped nerve starting from my neck and running down into my arm," he said.
"I need the operation for general life, not just from a rugby point of view. It had become too uncomfortable over the past eight or so months and has grown progressively worse since the World Cup.
"I just couldn't go through another full season like this. The time came to get some opinions on it and all the surgeons I saw were singing from the same hymn sheet. That gave me confidence that it did need doing.
"I've felt it during collisions, whether I've been in control of them or not. It hasn't been dangerous, but you go down because your arm doesn't work which means you're not much good to your team."
Just last week O'Driscoll swatted aside questions over retirement in the wake of the World Cup and today's news will only fuel concerns for his future.
Few players are as courageous as the Lions centre and his fearless approach to his game has taken a toll on his body.
But O'Driscoll, who is contracted to the Irish Rugby Football Union until 2013 - the year of the next Lions tour - has made a habit of making those writing his playing obituary look foolish.
Next summer's three-Test tour of New Zealand appears to be his likely point of return for Ireland and the player himself believes this setback may have the unexpected benefit of actually extending his career.
"This gives me the chance to go away, refocus and set more goals for the latter part of my career," he said.
"When the operation is done I'll be able to come back and get some quality rehab done and then set an exact date to return on. The latter stages of the Heineken Cup is something to target.
"I'll know more about how I'm feeling and if I'm getting stronger in the weeks after the operation. I'll be able to set those targets better as time passes. I've been out for six months before and know how to cope with these things.
"I see myself coming back from this and playing for certainly another season. Who knows after that, let's see how the body feels.
"In a strange way a little break like this can give you the incentive to go on and play for a longer time than you anticipated. I certainly feel like I have plenty more to offer."
O'Driscoll was omitted from Leinster's RaboDirect PRO12 win over Munster last Friday and has not played since Ireland's World Cup quarter-final defeat by Wales.
In a statement on their club website, Leinster said: "It has been confirmed that Brian O'Driscoll will undergo surgery next week for a trapped nerve in his shoulder which is expected to rule the Ireland captain out for up to six months."
O'Driscoll is Ireland's record try scorer, having touched down 45 times.
He took over the national captaincy on a permanent basis in 2003 upon the retirement of Keith Wood.
Munster lock Paul O'Connell will lead Ireland in his absence.
