of hope and will against improbable odds.”
Jonathan Perry,
Boston Globe
Room 217 Foundation Annual Conference
Toronto, Canada
Septermber 13, 28 and October 6, 2013
Residency at Artists Collaborative Theater of New England
Portsmouth, NH
July 19, 2013
Phillips Exeter Academy
Exeter, NH
May 16, 2013
Fieldstone Middle School
Montvale, NJ
May 15, 2013
Rober R. Lazar Middle School
Montville, NJ
April 26, 2013
Gibraltar Area Schools Community Care Givers Event
Fish Creek, WI
April 19, 2013
Brain Injury Association of Maryland
Timonium, MD
November 17 - November 18, 2012
TEDx Beacon Street
Boston, MA
October 24, 2012
The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT
Cambridge, MA
September 27, 2012
Nashua Public Library
Nashua, NH
September 7, 2012
Berklee College of Music Opening Day
Boston, MA
May 3, 2012
Washington State TBI Conference
Seattle, WA
April 2 - April 6, 2012
Berklee College of Music
Boston, MA
January 25, 2012
Krempels Center
Portsmouth, NH
November 29, 2011
Bridgewater College
Bridgewater, VA
November 9, 2011
VA New York Harbor Healthcare
Brooklyn, NY
October 20, 2011
VA Boston Healthcare System
Brockton, MA
October 19, 2011
VA Stratton Medical Center
Albany, NY
October 8, 2011
Nightingale-Bamford School
New York, NY
September 12, 2011
VA Boston Healthcare System
West Roxbury, MA
May 24, 2011
Spaulding Rehabilitation
Hospital Cape Cod
Sandwich, MA
May 19-20, 2011
Brain Injury Association
of Nebraska
Kearney, NE
April 28, 2011
Kennedy Center
Bridgeport, CT
April 14, 2011
Fieldstone Middle School
Montvale, NJ
February 2, 2011
Quinnipiac University
Hamden, CT
January 30, 2011
Drexel University
Philadelphia, PA
October 26, 2010
Moore Center
Manchester, NH
October 14, 2010
Northeast State
Community College
Blountville, TN
September 23, 2010
Regional Conference for Stroke Care Professionals
Mission Hospital
Asheville, NC
September 13, 2010
Schwartz Rounds at
Baystate Medical Center
Springfield, MA
May 20, 2010
Schwartz Center Rounds at
Sinai Hospital
Stoughton, MA
May 8, 2010
Rhode Island Occupational
Therapy Asociation
Conference
Warwick, RI
Keynote Speakers
May 3, 2010
Brain Injury Association
of Wisconsin
Madison, WI
Keynote Address
April 29, 2010
Center for Health Ethics
University of Missouri
Columbia, MO
March 25, 2010
Brain Injury Association
of Kansas and
Greater Kansas City
Kansas City, KS
Keynote Address
February 3, 2010
Schwartz Center Rounds
at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital
Boston, MA
November 17, 2009
14th Annual
Kenneth B. Schwartz
Center Dinner
Boston, MA
Both Jason & Marjorie featured in the
Schwartz Center's
"Voices of Caregivers" video;
Musical performance and Speech by Jason
September 11, 2009
Schwartz Center Rounds
at Emerson Hospital
Concord, MA
May 20, 2009
Brain Injury Association
of New Hampshire
Concord, NH
Keynote Speakers
May 19, 2009
Crotched Mountain
Rehabilitation Center
Greenfield, NH
May 8, 2009
Winchester Hospital
Winchester, MA
April 27, 2009
Congressional Briefing on
Health Insurance Coverage Protection Act
Washington, D.C.
April 23, 2009
Brain Injury Association
of Minnesota
St. Cloud, MN
March 25, 2009
Brain Injury Association
of Kansas and
Greater Kansas City
Kansas City, KS
March 19, 2009
Brain Injury Association
of Massachusetts
Marlborough, MA
March 4, 2009
Collegiate School
New York, NY
February 25, 2009
Spaulding
Rehabilitation Hospital
Boston, MA
Backstory
In August of 2004, Jason Crigler, one of New York’s most sought-after guitarists, suffered an AVM brain hemorrhage while playing a show in Manhattan. He was rushed to the hospital where doctors told Jason’s family, “Even if he lives through the night, there won’t be much left of the man you know.”
Jason’s pregnant wife and the rest of his family refused to accept the dire prognosis. Convinced that Jason was “there,” his family mounted an intensive and intimate course of rehabilitation that would force Jason’s doctors to reconsider the factors that inspire recovery.
Jason and his sister Marjorie have developed a powerful multimedia presentation that explains how and why Jason recovered. Drawing on their unique, personal experience, they show how intense family involvement makes the difference in a positive recovery. While Marjorie speaks from the family’s point of view, Jason offers a survivor’s perspective on the challenges he faced. The presentation closes with a live performance by Jason of his song “The Books on the Shelf,” which was the first song Jason wrote after recovering.
What is an AVM?
An arteriovenous malformation, or AVM, is an abnormal
blood vessel.
In a healthy set-up, arteries carry oxygen-rich blood from the heart and lungs to the rest of the body. After the oxygen has been delivered, veins bring blood back to the heart and lungs to pick up more oxygen.
To reach individual cells, the big thick arteries branch into smaller and smaller blood vessels, first arterioles and then capillaries. Being thin and narrow, capillaries help diffuse the pressure of blood coming from the arteries and pulsing into the veins. Blood leaving capillaries enters tiny venules and then larger veins which lead to the heart and lungs.
Where an AVM occurs, an artery connects to a vein without capillaries. As a result, the blood pressure in that area remains high. Sometime nothing happens. Other times, the walls of the AVM blood vessel weaken and break. If the hemorrhage occurs in the head, it is particularly dangerous. Because the skull cannot expand, parts of the brain may be squashed by accumulating blood. Many factors—including medical treatment, the location of the bleed, and the patient’s age and overall health—contribute to the brain’s ability to recover from an AVM hemorrhage.
It reminds us that we still have much to learn about the power of hope
and the brain's ability to
heal itself.”
Christopher Carter, Pys.D,
Director of Behavior Medicine, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Boston, MA