Bret Michaels Leaves Hospital Expected to Make Full Recovery

Bret Michaels, who just 12 days ago suffered a massive brain hemorrhage, has been discharged from Phoenix, Arizona's Barrow Neurological Institute and is expected to make a full recovery, the Poison frontman's doctor Joseph Zabramski told the media today. As Rolling Stone previously reported, the 47-year-old rocker was admitted to Phoenix's St. Joseph Hospital after complaining of an excruciating headache, which tests revealed to be a subarachnoid hemorrhage, or bleeding in his brain stem. While several "road blocks," including Michaels' Type 1 diabetes and the hemorrhage side effect hyponatremia, slowed Michaels' recovery initially, the current Celebrity Apprentice star has bounced back, Zabramski said.

Look back at Bret Michaels' career with Poison in photos.

Zabramski said that doctors were unsure what caused Michaels to suffer a subarachnoid hemorrhage but added that Michaels' diabetes and his recent appendectomy weren't suspected. "It's one of those rare instances where we're pleased that we can't find the cause of the bleeding," Zabramski said, insinuating that if diabetes were the cause it could potentially lead to further problems. Zabramski said the chances that Michaels could have a second hemorrhage haven't increased. "He has an unbelievable fight in him and told me what kept him alive at the moment of the hemorrhage was that he 'did not want his family to wake up and see him lying unconscious in the middle of the floor,' " the doctor said.

While Michaels' father told the press that the rocker was experiencing slurred speech, Zabramski said that was only an early symptom and that Michaels is now speaking normally. He is, however, receiving physical therapy to aid his walking and is experiencing "severe back pain." Michaels will undergo more tests in two weeks to make sure he's in the clear, and Zabramski commended the frontman's physical shape, saying he had "perfectly normal blood vessels and doesn't have any of the effects you'd normally see from diabetes."

As the press conference exclusively addressed Michaels' medical situation, it remains unclear when Michaels will go back on the road — postponed dates have tentatively been rescheduled to late May — or whether he'll appear on the season finale of The Celebrity Apprentice. Zabramski said he advises Michaels continue to rest for four to six more weeks.

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Song Stories

“Time to Pretend”

MGMT | 2008

Listening to MGMT’s breakthrough song, one might interpret it as being about the excesses of rock stardom, but it’s actually about the duo’s pet praying mantis. Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden told Rolling Stone they got the idea from the insect's jerky movements. The mantis died, but the two bandmates kept the egg sack and allowed the hundreds of eggs to hatch. “We tried to name them all, but they died after a day,” said Goldwasser, with VanWyngarden chiming in, “But the praying mantis dance inspired us.”

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