Reason to Hope: Bret Michaels Could Be Back for Finale

Bret Michaels has had awful luck of late, but he could be on the brink of capping a remarkable recovery from a near-fatal brain hemorrhage with a dramatic return to the season finale of "Celebrity Apprentice," according to doctors.

Michaels, who in the last year had also been struck on the head by a falling stage and nearly died after his appendix exploded is one of seven contestants left on the show. Segments leading up to the May 23 finale were taped last fall, but the capper is aired live and it is unknown if he made the cuts that will be revealed in the coming weeks. But if he did, The Hollywood Reporter reports the onetime Poison frontman could be well enough soon to participate in the season finale of Celebrity Apprentice:

Doctors say it is possible that Michaels, the outspoken 47-year-old former Poison frontman currently competing on "The Celebrity Apprentice," could be healthy enough to appear on the NBC reality series' live finale on May 23…

(Dr. Paul) Vespa said Michaels' type of hemorrhage can "wipe a person out for a while" but that recovery could take "just a few weeks, if everything goes absolutely perfect, or up to several months." He also said it is unlikely Michaels would experience further complications, though the most common are short-term memory loss, concentration problems and depression.

Even if Michaels was eliminated in the upcoming episodes, I expect his presence to be felt on the finale, complete with standing ovation and doctor-prescribed honeys at his side. The show's star, Donald Trump, has expressed warm wishes for his recovery and the celebrities in the competition were all moved by Michaels' ordeal.

Dr. Joseph Zabramski, who is treating the rocker at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, said Michaels has shown an "undeniable" will to survive the brain hemorrhage that put him in critical condition, according to the New York Daily News.

"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," said Zabramski, who is the chief of cerebrovascular surgery at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix.

THR also says Michaels plans on moving forward with a summer tour with Lynyrd Skynyrd, due to begin at the beginning of this month. It’s an ambitious game plan for a dude who is still in intensive care. But that’s Bret Michaels for you. The man takes a lickin’ and keeps on talkin’ dirty. It’ll be nice to have him back.

Contact Us