Living with Lumbar Osteochondrosis in Japan

I have the opportunity to work in Japan (rural area of Tokushima Prefecture), living with my longstanding girlfriend. I was happy about the job commitment but on the other side I am worried about the future due to my health issues. Two years ago my orthopedist diagnosed (advanced) lumbar osteochondrosis here in my home country. Luckily I needn't to take pain killers up till now but use to go to gym and indoor swimming pool to train my back muscles.

As a 'Non-Japanese-Speaker' I am afraid of that the situation getting worse there in Japan, have pain, can't do my new office job (anymore) and need special medical treatment. Is there anybody outside with same or similar health problems and can give me an advice so that I can make the (hopefully) correct decision. Thank you

Learn Japanese. Why anybody would consider living in Japan, or any country for that matter, without speaking the language is beyond me.

Well, I would say, is your condition severe enough to condition your life, then stay in Germany and try to convince your gf to life with you there.
If however your condition is not so severe that you want it to influence all the rest of your life and you really want to move to Japan with your gf, then come.
Be prepared to spend the first few weeks searching for a specialist doctor in your disease. Japan is a medically advanced country, so I am pretty sure there are specialists for your condition here as well. Might be more in bigger cities rather than in rural areas, but I guess it is not a disease that causes emergency situations, so travelling to a doctor every now and then will be needed.
You will need to rely on your gf (assuming that she is Japanese) at the beginning and get her help in finding a doctor and visiting him/her.
Over time if you plan to spend more time / years in Japan, definitely learn Japanese, but be prepared that it takes quite some time. I have studied about 1.5 years in intensive course and still am just at N2 level. Which is very frustrating if you look at how easy it is (for most Europeans) to learn an other European language. But that's what it is. With your gf and living in Japan you will have further incentives to learn the language and to practice it.

There will be certain problems you may encounter in your worklife, like inadequate furniture (I feel that office chairs and tables are WAY too low), and insufficient days of PTO and time for sickleave. But this is the same for everyone working in Japan. I guess with the furniture, if you can make a point to your employer that it causes you undue stress they might allow you to bring your own chair, but be prepared to pay for it.

But on the other hand you will be living in a country that many love and more importantly with your gf that I assume you love ;-)

If she does some internet search for you, she should be able to find specialized doctor and maybe also some support group.

@ the previous poster, the OP never said that he / she doesn't want to learn Japanese, but right now doesn't speak it and obviously worries about doctor visits.

If you decide for it, enjoy your life in Japan!

Well, I would say, is your condition severe enough to condition your life, then stay in Germany and try to convince your gf to life with you there.

That is ableist shite, implying some people with some degree of disability shouldn't be as free to live where they want as "able-bodied" people.

Fact: whatever your condition is, there are people living in Japan with it. There's no reason why you can't do likewise.

Also, no, you don't need to look for a specialist in your condition yourself. Just go to your neighbourhood 整形外科 clinic, and the physician there can refer you to one; that's part of their job.