Over the years, von Bohlen and his TPR bandmates have endured many life-threatening events. During a 1999 Promise Ring tour, the band's van encountered black ice, resulting in a wreck that ejected all the band members on board and placed them in the hospital. von Bohlen was ejected through the windshield but sustained what were thought to be minor injuries. Prior to the recording of The Promise Ring's final album wood/water in April 2001, von Bohlen was diagnosed with a fist-sized meningioma which had been causing severe, crippling headaches and illness for two years and believed to be related to head trauma sustained in the accident. The fist-sized brain tumor was successfully removed and deemed benign, but a staph infection, which caused von Bohlen to pass out on stage and required two additional surgeries to remove an infected palm sized piece of his skull and to replace it a year later, prevented the band from touring for a substantial amount of time. Since then, von Bohlen appears to have a clean bill of health and has resumed recording and touring.