CHARLOTTE — Tershawn Wharton tried to ignore the signs.

This past spring, during OTAs, the Panthers defensive tackle felt a tingling in his extremities; his fingers, his hands, and every now and then, it would shoot up his arms. He ignored it at first, because a year of lingering injuries (hamstring and toe) had kept him off the field, and he was tired of not playing.

But then, he'd be at home, playing with his kids, and it would hit again. A spark, followed by numbness.

"It was scary," Wharton admitted on Thursday, speaking to the media after his first week back on the practice field this season. "I kind of didn't want to say anything about it because I just want to be out there, but I knew I had to.

"There are certain things that kind of go all the way through your body. So I felt it in different parts of my body, whether it was my hand or when I was doing things with my kids. Certain movements would make me feel it, so it was something that I was dealing with."

When it kept happening, Wharton realized it was time to speak up. He told the team athletic trainers and VP of player health and performance, Denny Kellington (who went through the same thing with Micah Hyde in Buffalo), who had a good idea of what was happening, and Wharton was immediately sent for scans.

Imaging revealed he had a herniated disc. It required ACDF (anterior cervical discectomy and fusion) surgery, which he had to go to California to have. Essentially, they fused his C4 and C5 vertebrae. Then came the tedious physical therapy process, just to get back to a healthy place. After that, he could finally enter the Panthers' return-to-play program to ensure he was ready to take the field again.

It's a path Wharton has become all too familiar with over the past year, but one he now knows how to walk.

"This sport is — you're going to get hurt in it,"  said Wharton. "So I just approach it as that. Things happen, and every time I just come back, it's a part of your story in this game. So just continuing to stay focused and knowing that I am the player I am regardless of the injuries and just finding a way to continue to challenge myself even with being in RTP."

The RTP program has given him a chance to connect with teammates he might not otherwise get to, such as offensive linemen Taylor Moton and Ikem Ekwonu, who have both been rehabbing from their respective illness and injury since training camp.

"At this point, all these guys are my brothers, so we all communicate," shared Wharton. "Me and TMo were in RTP a lot; we're on the other side of the ball, so we don't really talk like that. I think the relationship grew there and Ickey as well."

The veteran, who won a Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs, also used the time to mentor a defensive line unit that skews incredibly young. Rookies Lee Hunter and Aaron Hall and second-year man (but first here) TeRah Edwards have played ample snaps alongside Derrick Brown and Bobby Brown III.

Coaching them up also ensured Wharton stayed as ready as possible.

"I think, every week you see these guys take a jump," bragged Wharton. "Lee's playing at a high level right now. Aaron as well, so the effort is there. So just seeing them guys from week one to now is a night-and-day difference."

"Just being able to watch over the weeks and having to coach up some younger guys, I think just coming back into it, I never let it leave me from preparing. Every week I prepare like I was playing, so it's just not a physical part. It's back with me."

And that preparation is paying off.

At 12 weeks out from the surgery, Wharton's doctors told him he was progressing at 85 percent growth (the bones fused will turn into one bone over time). Then, Monday of this week, Wharton went in for the appointment that he hoped would finally deliver good news.

"Monday we got a CT scan at like 8 a.m., and they let me know by like 10," he smiled. He was back at 100 percent and cleared to go.

He practiced this week, and the Panthers will now see how his body responds to that physical activity before deciding what to do next in relation to Sunday's Week 6 game against the Philadelphia Eagles. The possibility of returning him to the defensive line, though, already has defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero excited.

"Turk is one of our best football players when he's available, and so once he is ready and once he is in there, we're going to deploy him the same way," said Evero. "A lot of the time, when you come back off of injury and off an extended time of not playing football, you can't just resume your normal workload too. So there's probably going to be an acclimation period for him as well, and a snap count, a pitch count, and all those things. But I mean, he's a hell of a football player, and he's certainly going to help us."

Added Wharton, "Well, my expectation is to play. I feel good, and I'm ready to be out there.

"I think football shape is the thing that you got to get in by playing it. We're going to be smart with me, but I don't think you can replicate it, but I think when the juices get flowing, and everything gets going on Sundays, you'll be surprised what you could do."

Granted, wanting to play and being ready to play after just one week of practice are two different things. But the light at the end of that tunnel is brighter than ever, and that's something to celebrate.

"I'm just going out there to dominate one play at a time," said Wharton. "Get in the groove again and just go out there and give my effort and show everybody what I'm here for."