From Bougie Grubs to Brain Upgrader: The Unexpected Journey of Angela Evans
Hey, it’s your favorite foodie friend, Bougie Grubs. But today, I’m not here to tickle your taste buds with mouth-watering recipes. Instead, I want to introduce you to the woman behind the pans: Angela Evans, entrepreneur, marketing guru, and now a certified Neuroscience Coach.
Yes, you read that right—a Brain Training Coach. It may sound like it came out of left field, but trust me, it’s all connected. Let me tell you how.
Back in 2017, life was busy. I was thriving as a Chief Marketing Officer in the medical field, constantly challenging my mind and loving every second of it. Then came the headaches. Not your everyday kind, but the kind that stops you in your tracks.
After three years of doctor visits, tests, and unanswered questions, I finally got a diagnosis: Chiari Malformation, a rare condition where part of the brain, the cerebellum, extends into the spinal canal because of a smaller-than-normal skull. It disrupts spinal fluid flow and causes chronic pain, balance issues, and fatigue.
Apparently, I was born with it. I joked, “I always knew I had a big brain!” But beneath the humor, life changed. Like many people with chronic pain, I learned to fake feeling “fine.” I adapted, managed, and kept going because that’s what faith and determination do.
Then came this February. It started as one of my “good days.” I was a little dizzy but brushed it off as hunger. Then, suddenly, my words turned into gibberish—like Charlie Brown’s teacher on repeat. Within minutes, I was in an ambulance.
Doctors told me I’d had a stroke on both sides of my brain, in the globus pallidus region, which helps control movement, motivation, focus, and motor coordination. Losing movement on my entire right side was terrifying. Surviving it was a miracle.
Rehabilitation became my new full-time job. I had to retrain my brain to do things it once did automatically. That’s when I stumbled back across something familiar: brain training. My daughter’s tutor had once mentioned it to help with focus, so I thought, why not now?
When I couldn’t find a local coach, I did what I always do—I became one. I enrolled in a Neuroscience Coaching Certification program to better understand how the brain heals, adapts, and grows.
I’ll be honest. I hoped it would instantly fix everything. It didn’t. But it did something even more powerful: it improved my mood, sharpened my focus, boosted my memory, and gave me peace. My brain was still healing, but my life was improving.
As my recovery continued, I began sharing what I’d learned with friends, and they saw the same results. That’s when it hit me. If brain training helped me through Chiari and a stroke, imagine what it could do for others seeking clarity, productivity, or healing.
So, I created Brain Upgrader, a workbook designed to help people reprogram their minds for success, focus, and well-being. For every workbook sold, I gift a copy of my companion book for stroke survivors, The Brain Puzzle Rebuild, to a stroke or Chiari patient.
No, I’m not giving up marketing. And no, I’m not hanging up my apron either. I’m simply adding a new layer to my purpose: helping people train the most powerful tool they have—their brain.
In a world where technology does so much for us, our minds need exercise more than ever. Whether it’s for healing, focus, or growth, I want everyone to experience what happens when you upgrade your brain, because life is too precious to live on autopilot.
If you’ve ever felt stuck, unfocused, or just ready for a new level of clarity and confidence, Brain Upgrader was made for you. It’s filled with science-backed strategies and simple, daily exercises to help strengthen your mind from the inside out. You can get your copy, either paperback or eBook, through Barnes & Noble. Both links can be found at extrahand4u.com/braintraining.
Every purchase helps fund a free copy of The Brain Puzzle Rebuild for someone recovering from a stroke or Chiari malformation. You’re not just upgrading your own brain—you’re helping someone else rebuild theirs.
