May 5, 2010 / 1680 reads
After spending almost two weeks in the ICU at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona. BRET MICHAELS has spoken for the first time since be suffered a brain haemorrhage with PEOPLE Magazine.
"I opened my eyes and was like: 'I am so thankful. I'm lucky to be alive,'" he tells People magazine. "It just wasn't my time yet! I'm a believer it's a combination of will and faith that kept me alive. Will - and good medical attention - and faith.
As painful as this experience has been, I was given a second chance, right? I don't want to sit around every night worrying this is going to happen again. What I want to do is make a positive bucket list and say, 'I'm just gonna go for it.'"
According to Bret, his family was the only thing running through his mind when he first started experiencing pain the night of April 21. "I was just sad," he said. "I was not going to have my family wake up and see me dead on the living room floor. [And, I was] sad thinking of my daughters growing up without me."
When the doctor asked if he had kids and if he wanted them to come to the hospital in case the unthinkable happened, Bret asked, "Am I dying? If I'm dying, I want to see my kids, but if I have a chance to [live], I don't want them to see me in this condition." The doctor responded, "Well, there's obviously a chance. You're still alive, and people die instantly from this."
Added Bret, "It's the weirdest thing: You feel so much love and realize in a moment, in an instant -- you focus on what becomes really important. My first goal is to get back to 100 per cent. I want to continue to rock the world, and I want to continue to love my family and be a good father. I was given a second chance!"
Dr. Joseph Zabramski, chief of cerebrovascular surgery at the Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, said he recommended that Michaels wait at least four to six weeks before resuming normal activity. He declined to say when Michaels could resume touring. Doctors will examine Michaels every two weeks until he's recovered.
