Rocker BRET MICHAELS has committed himself to a life of complete sobriety following his health nightmare earlier this year (10) - because he refuses to kill himself drinking alcohol after battling to recover from his ailments.
The Poison star underwent an emergency appendectomy before collapsing from a near-fatal brain haemorrhage in April (10). He later suffered a stroke and was subsequently diagnosed with a hole in his heart.
Michaels has made a miraculous comeback from his health troubles and returned to the stage to complete his U.S. tour shortly after his hospitalisation, but he admits he's not fully recovered.
He tells People magazine, "I'm only 85 per cent back, so I can't kickbox. I have short-term memory loss, so I have to repeat things to myself over and over. And I haven't had a good night's sleep since. My goal next year is to rock harder and sleep more!"
And Michaels reveals he's turned his back on his wild days of partying so he can keep rocking into old age and treasure the time he has with his girlfriend Kristi Gibson and their two kids, Raine, 10, and Jorja, five.
He says, "I haven't had a drop of alcohol since my appendectomy. I didn't fight through this to want to die...
"My thing now is spending time with Kristi and our daughters. I don't want my legacy to be a haemorrhage. I want it to be: I'm a fighter, I'm passionate, I'm hardworking, and I love music."
Michaels, who is also diabetic, is due to go under the knife in January (11) to repair the hole in his heart.