American Idol judge Paula Abdul underwent a secret surgery on her neck earlier this month in a bid to relieve the chronic pain she has suffered for 20 years.

The 46-year-old’s persistent problems with pain began with a cheerleading mishap when she was 17. The symptoms were later exacerbated by a 1987 car accident.

Doctors at the Olympia Medical Center in Los Angeles performed a delicate procedure on Paula’s neck and spine during a five day hospital stay.

“Paula was about to begin another season of “Idol” living in constant pain,” a source reveals in the September 1 edition of the National Enquirer. “Auditions for the show begin in New York at the end of August, and she wanted to make sure she was feeling her best before hitting the road.”