Schlotterbeck had not featured for Dortmund since suffering an ankle ligament injury in Germany's World Cup match against Ivory Coast in June, missing the club's entire pre-season and the opening matches of the campaign as a result.
The centre-back returned to the starting line-up on Saturday, 84 days on from the injury, and was visibly delighted to be back out on the pitch in front of the home supporters at Signal Iduna Park.
"I've missed it so much," Schlotterbeck told the club's website. "It's a kind of adrenaline we're chasing."
"It was a serious injury, and I'm just happy to be back."
Fabio Silva opened the scoring for Dortmund inside the opening five minutes, latching onto a long ball from Serhou Guirassy before rounding the goalkeeper to finish, with SC Paderborn pushing hard in response as they looked to disrupt the hosts with an intense pressing game throughout the afternoon.
Borussia Dortmund were unable to add to their lead until late on, when substitute Felix Nmecha struck twice in the space of nine minutes, the second an acrobatic finish from a Marcel Sabitzer cross, to seal a comfortable 3-0 win in front of a sold-out home crowd.
Guirassy also had two efforts ruled out for offside during the first half, having provided the assist for Silva's opener and continued to look Dortmund's most dangerous attacking threat throughout the contest against the newly promoted visitors.
Sabitzer, another substitute, also struck the crossbar in the closing stages before turning provider for Nmecha's second, capping a productive afternoon for Dortmund's bench.
The result means Dortmund have won all three of their opening Bundesliga fixtures this season, making a perfect start to the campaign under head coach Niko Kovac and building early confidence in the squad ahead of a demanding run of fixtures.
Schlotterbeck's return provides a timely boost for Dortmund as they continue to juggle domestic and European commitments, with the defender expected to feature more regularly as his match fitness builds over the coming weeks and months ahead.