English pop star George Michael will never feel as "safe" as he did before a life-threatening bout of pneumonia two years ago.

The `Careless Whisper` hitmaker, who collapsed at his London home last month, reportedly for the second time recently, "almost" died after being stricken with acute pneumonia in December 2011 and he admits the experience changed him, reports contactmusic.com.

Speaking before his recent illness, he said: "It almost killed me. On a subconscious level it was very frightening and I'll probably never feel quite as safe again. But oh my God, I was just so grateful to come out alive and very happy to get back to my home in London."