Poison’s Bret Michaels doesn’t want his health problems to stop him.
The frontman recently joined an interview with People and discussed how his journey has been a mix of highs and lows:
“My life is a true series of roses and absolute thorns. That’s my everyday life, and as a type 1 diabetic, I always had this attitude that I was not going to be a victim. This is the card I was dealt.”
Michaels added:
“I said this is not going to stop me. I’m going to figure out how I can move forward with music and my life.”
People Thought Michaels Was A Drug Addict
The singer has had Type 1 diabetes since he was a child, and also faced a brain hemorrhage in 2010, heart surgery to fix a hole in 2011, and kidney surgery in 2014. In a new chat with A&E, Bret talked about his diabetes and why he decided to tell people about it.
Some thought he was a drug addict when he collapsed at a concert, but it was actually because of his diabetes. He remembered people calling him a drug addict:
“Probably a week later, when everything started coming out, they went into the heavy duty. ‘Was Bret Michaels a heroin addict? How much drugs are involved? Is this where his life is going?’”
People, including the press, thought he was overdosing when they found syringes in his trash cans. However, they were actually insulin syringes. He explained how he told those around him about his situation:
“‘Here he is at a pivotal moment in his career and he collapses on stage from drugs.’ And that’s when I came forth and told everyone, ‘Look, I’m a type one diabetic. This is what happened to me.’ I just never thought of addressing it because I didn’t want to make that the focal point of Poison.”
Michaels lastly added:
“The blessing that comes out of this at Madison Square Garden is you end up owning it and it forced my hand to own it. And that’s what made me even more connected to the fans. Now I’m massively connected to people that go through adversity and not just diabetes. Any adversity in your life.”
Bret’s A&E biography premieres on Sunday, June 16, at 9 p.m. Before the show, you can join a live session on Michaels’ Facebook page at 8:30 pm ET/5:30 pm PT. Starting Monday, June 17, you can catch the show on demand and on streaming platforms like DirecTV, Fubo TV, Sling TV, and Philo.