At some point in time, Bryan lost all strength in his right arm and required neck surgery.
On the May 12 episode of Raw, he was attacked by Kane and stretchered away that same night to justify his absence.
On May 15, Bryan underwent successful neck surgery, with a cervical foraminotomy to decompress the nerve root having been performed.
Two weeks later on Raw, when Bryan refused to relinquish his title Stephanie McMahon threatened to fire Bryan's wife Brie Bella, if Bryan did not give up his title on June 1 at Payback.
The ultimatum resulted in Bella "quitting" WWE so that Bryan did not have to give up his title.
However, when it was revealed that Bryan would not be able to compete at Money in the Bank and defend his title, The Authority stripped him of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the June 9 episode of Raw, ending Bryan's third reign at 64 days.
Due to his injury, Bryan was largely off WWE TV during this period.
Months after the neck surgery, Bryan's strength still had not returned to his arm.
Many doctors felt a second surgery was needed, while others told Bryan he would not be able to return to wrestling.
Bryan contemplated further elbow surgery, but instead went to Denver to undergo the Muscle Activation Techniques program, which successfully returned the strength to his right arm.
To prepare for his in-ring return, he trained in kickboxing and jujitsu.

On the November 24 episode of Raw, Bryan returned to WWE, taunting the recently deposed Authority.
As guest general manager for that episode of Raw and the November 28 episode of SmackDown, Bryan arranged punishments for those allied with The Authority.
Apart from scheduling a chairs match between Kane and Ryback for TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 14, Bryan also affirmed that he would return soon.

Bryan told WWE management that he wished to be the "face of SmackDown" to increase the show's viewership.
Bryan returned to the ring on the January 15, 2015 episode of SmackDown, with his opponent Kane being disqualified due to The Authority's interference and later that night Bryan won the six-man tag team main event.
The next week on SmackDown, despite more interference by The Authority, Bryan defeated Kane in a no disqualification main event to keep his Royal Rumble match spot.

Bryan entered the 2015 Royal Rumble match at number 10, managing one elimination before being eliminated by Bray Wyatt in the first half of the match, causing the Philadelphia crowd to repeatedly chant for him during the second half of the match while booing other wrestlers entering the match, including eventual winner and fellow "good guy" Roman Reigns.

On the January 29 episode of SmackDown, Bryan ended his feud with Kane by defeating him in a casket match.
On the February 2 episode of Raw, Bryan defeated Seth Rollins, earning the right to face Roman Reigns at Fastlane, as the winner of the Fastlane match would challenge Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 31 for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
At Fastlane on February 22, Bryan lost to Reigns, failing to make his entry to WrestleMania main event.

After Fastlane, Bryan set his sights on the Intercontinental Championship for WrestleMania 31, where he was one of multiple wrestlers who came to possess champion Bad News Barrett's title belt while defeating Barrett in non-title matches.
On the March 12 episode of SmackDown, Bryan declared his entry into the multi-man ladder match for the Intercontinental title at WrestleMania 31.
After Bryan was pinned twice within a week by fellow ladder match entrant Dolph Ziggler, the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter reported that "WWE has made it clear where Bryan stands after starting to lose regularly now".
WWE's storylines for Bryan since his return were widely criticized.
Dave Scherer of Pro Wrestling Insider questioned "bringing Bryan back for the Rumble in the first place" if there was no intention of letting Bryan win.
Benjamin Tucker of Pro Wrestling Torch criticized WWE for having "watered down" Bryan's heroic character to a "sneaky, backstabbing, cheap, aggravating jerk" for the feu
At some point in time, Bryan lost all strength in his right arm and required neck surgery. On the May 12 episode of Raw, he was attacked by Kane and stretchered away that same night to justify his absence. On May 15, Bryan underwent successful neck surgery, with a cervical foraminotomy to decompress the nerve root having been performed. Two weeks later on Raw, when Bryan refused to relinquish his title Stephanie McMahon threatened to fire Bryan's wife Brie Bella, if Bryan did not give up his title on June 1 at Payback. The ultimatum resulted in Bella "quitting" WWE so that Bryan did not have to give up his title. However, when it was revealed that Bryan would not be able to compete at Money in the Bank and defend his title, The Authority stripped him of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the June 9 episode of Raw, ending Bryan's third reign at 64 days. Due to his injury, Bryan was largely off WWE TV during this period. Months after the neck surgery, Bryan's strength still had not returned to his arm. Many doctors felt a second surgery was needed, while others told Bryan he would not be able to return to wrestling. Bryan contemplated further elbow surgery, but instead went to Denver to undergo the Muscle Activation Techniques program, which successfully returned the strength to his right arm. To prepare for his in-ring return, he trained in kickboxing and jujitsu.
On the November 24 episode of Raw, Bryan returned to WWE, taunting the recently deposed Authority. As guest general manager for that episode of Raw and the November 28 episode of SmackDown, Bryan arranged punishments for those allied with The Authority. Apart from scheduling a chairs match between Kane and Ryback for TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 14, Bryan also affirmed that he would return soon.
Bryan told WWE management that he wished to be the "face of SmackDown" to increase the show's viewership. Bryan returned to the ring on the January 15, 2015 episode of SmackDown, with his opponent Kane being disqualified due to The Authority's interference and later that night Bryan won the six-man tag team main event. The next week on SmackDown, despite more interference by The Authority, Bryan defeated Kane in a no disqualification main event to keep his Royal Rumble match spot.
Bryan entered the 2015 Royal Rumble match at number 10, managing one elimination before being eliminated by Bray Wyatt in the first half of the match, causing the Philadelphia crowd to repeatedly chant for him during the second half of the match while booing other wrestlers entering the match, including eventual winner and fellow "good guy" Roman Reigns.
On the January 29 episode of SmackDown, Bryan ended his feud with Kane by defeating him in a casket match. On the February 2 episode of Raw, Bryan defeated Seth Rollins, earning the right to face Roman Reigns at Fastlane, as the winner of the Fastlane match would challenge Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 31 for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. At Fastlane on February 22, Bryan lost to Reigns, failing to make his entry to WrestleMania main event.
After Fastlane, Bryan set his sights on the Intercontinental Championship for WrestleMania 31, where he was one of multiple wrestlers who came to possess champion Bad News Barrett's title belt while defeating Barrett in non-title matches. On the March 12 episode of SmackDown, Bryan declared his entry into the multi-man ladder match for the Intercontinental title at WrestleMania 31. After Bryan was pinned twice within a week by fellow ladder match entrant Dolph Ziggler, the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter reported that "WWE has made it clear where Bryan stands after starting to lose regularly now". WWE's storylines for Bryan since his return were widely criticized. Dave Scherer of Pro Wrestling Insider questioned "bringing Bryan back for the Rumble in the first place" if there was no intention of letting Bryan win. Benjamin Tucker of Pro Wrestling Torch criticized WWE for having "watered down" Bryan's heroic character to a "sneaky, backstabbing, cheap, aggravating jerk" for the feu
Daniel Bryan