Brain Friends artwork

Life Sciences · Angie Cauthorn

Brain Friends

by Angie Cauthorn

 Brain Friends: The Podcast is a survivor-led show about stroke, brain health, aphasia, recovery, and health equity. Hosted by Angie Cauthorn, a two-time stroke survivor and aphasia advocate, Brain Friends takes complicated medical and research topics and turns them into everyday clarity. The show is for survivors, care partners, families, clinicians, researchers, and anyone trying to understand what life after stroke can really look like. Brain Friends began with me and my friend and co-host, Dr. D. Seles Gadson, a neuroscientist, speech-language pathologist, and champion for equity in aphasia care. Dr. Seles’s work focused on health disparities, representation, and making science useful for real communities. Her voice still opens and closes every episode, and her legacy remains part of the show’s foundation. Since launching in June 2022, Brain Friends has reached listeners in more than 100 countries, with conversations that center stroke recovery, aphasia, cognition, communication, prevention, brain health, and the real-life “now what?” after a neurological event. Regular segments include: The Breakdown: Clear explanations of stroke, aphasia, brain health, research, and recovery topics. Smart Cookie: The thoughtful question Angie asks guests about brain health, recovery, equity, or what they wish more people understood. OTC with the Commish: “On The Clock” style recovery talk, where Angie uses football draft energy to break down the moves, tools, and first-round picks that matter. The Check-In: Short, honest reflections on life after stroke, recovery, advocacy, and what comes next. Brain Friends is not here to give medical advice or empty inspiration. It is here to make the science clearer, the recovery road less lonely, and the next step easier to see. Welcome to Brain Friends.

Chart trend

Position in the Life Sciences chart (US), last 90 days.

#40
all-time peak
1
day in the top 50 since May 2025

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

BE FAST Stroke Signs And The Seconds That Matter with Karrima Owens

Send us Fan Mail A stroke doesn’t always arrive like a movie scene. Sometimes it shows up as a dragging leg, blurry vision, a face that won’t smile straight, or speech o

Aug 28
40 min

More than words, Why Storytelling Breaks Down In Aphasia Recovery

Send us Fan Mail What does it actually mean to recover language after a stroke? Not just pass a test, but tell a story, hold a conversation, explain what happened to you

Jul 16
41 min

Blood Pressure Basics For Stroke Prevention And Recovery With Dr Rachel Forman

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Rachel Forman is a stroke neurologist at Yale School of Medicine. She treats stroke, researches it, and takes that knowledge into communities throug

May 13
51 min

The Blueprint: Dr. Davetrina Seles Gadson on Black Stroke Survivors Health Equity and Aphasia

Send us Fan Mail Two world-class researchers walked into this conversation because of one woman. They did not have to. They chose to.  Dr. Peter Turkeltaub is a neurolo

Mar 31
47 min

New ASA 2026 Stroke Ischemic Guidelines with Chair Dr. Shyam Prabhakaran

Send us Fan Mail A stroke can feel like a lightning strike on the brain’s power grid—which is why the new 2026 AHA/ASA acute ischemic stroke guidelines focus on speed, c

Feb 2
43 min

Memories of Seles 5/24/82 - 1/11/25 raise a glass.

Send us Fan Mail A friendship became a movement when a survivor searching for culturally competent therapy met a clinician who refused to treat equity like an optional a

Jan 11
26 min

Understanding Aphasia: Tools, Consent, And Real-World Communication

Send us Fan Mail Words don’t just disappear; sometimes the path to them does. We explore what aphasia really is—evidence of brain injury—and why that framing changes eve

Jan 9
35 min

Aphasia, Dementia, and Stroke with Dr Roy Hamilton

Send us Fan Mail A face that slips, a word that won’t come, an arm that won’t lift—tiny moments that point to massive truths about how the brain works, heals, and someti

Oct 6 2025
44 min

From Jordan River Baptism to Emergency Evacuation: Dr Seles's Unexpected Journey

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Seles shares her harrowing experience of being in Israel when war broke out in October, capturing both the fear of the situation and the remarkable

May 27 2025
33 min

Welcome to Season 3

Send us Fan Mail Hey Brain Friends, Celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. Seles is at the heart of today's episode. I'm sharing the original recording of our

Mar 6 2025
45 min

Heartbreaking news about Dr Seles...

Send us Fan Mail In this brief episode of Brain Friends, Angie shares the devastating news of the passing of her beloved  friend and co-host, Dr. Davetrina Seles Gadson,

Jan 13 2025
10 min

Cognitive Impairment and Dementia

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Brain Friends, we delve into the complexities of cognitive function and its disorders.  Angie shares her personal journey with cogni

Dec 17 2024
31 min

Aphasia Assessments Explained: From the Western Aphasia Battery to Quality of Life

Send us Fan Mail  Language assessments after stroke are not all the same, and the type of test a clinician chooses directly affects what gets measured and what gets miss

Oct 15 2024
33 min

What is Anomic Aphasia?

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Brain Friends, we share a behind-the-scenes conversation between Angie and Dr. Seles on Anomia. Together we weigh the benefits of rec

Aug 31 2024
15 min

Five Ways to Advance Health Equity for Black People With Aphasia

Send us Fan Mail  Black stroke survivors with aphasia face compounding barriers to care, and the research is clear on what needs to change. This episode breaks down five

Jul 28 2024
34 min

Why Aphasia Awareness Matters: What Survivors, Families, and Clinicians Need to Know

Send us Fan Mail  Aphasia affects nearly 2 million Americans, yet most people have never heard of it. This episode makes the case for why awareness is not just a campaig

Jun 11 2024
30 min

Caregiver Tap In: Supporting Stroke Survivors with Aphasia Guest Charles Cauthorn

Send us Fan Mail  Stroke recovery does not happen alone. This episode brings Angie's husband & care partner Kiehl Cauthorn into the conversation for an honest look

May 6 2024
31 min

When Language Declines Slowly: Understanding Primary Progressive Aphasia

Send us Fan Mail  Primary progressive aphasia is not the same as stroke-related aphasia, and the difference matters for diagnosis, treatment, and family planning. In thi

Feb 29 2024
26 min

Alexia, Aphasia, Agraphia - Reading, Talking & Writing

Send us Fan Mail Alexia is an acquired reading disorder with difficulty seeing and reading words or understanding the meaning of written words. "Agraphia" is the loss of

Feb 1 2024
31 min

Brain Recovery After Stroke: Going Deeper on Neuroplasticity With Dr Roy Hamilton

Send us Fan Mail  Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to reorganize and rebuild after injury, and it is central to every aphasia recovery story. This episode goe

Nov 28 2023
58 min

Chart positions

Where Brain Friends ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 4, 2026).

#175 ▼ 56 Life Sciences US

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