This is the unspecified version of the paper. This version of the publication may differ from the final published version. Permanent repository link: http://openaccess.city.ac.uk/3797/ Link to published version: http://dx. Abstract Background: Stroke and aphasia can negatively affect a person's ability to maintain healthy social relationships, both within the family and also with friends and the wider network. To date this has been explored predominantly through qualitative interviews and

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... onnaires. Blogs written by people with aphasia constitute a novel source of data, comprised of people's own voices on issues that are of concern to them. Aims: to explore the impact of stroke and aphasia on a person's relationships with family, friends and the wider network through analysing blogs written by people with aphasia. Methods: Blog search engines were used to identify blogs sustained by a sole author who had aphasia following a stroke, and which reflected on their social network. The data was analysed qualitatively using Framework analysis. Outcomes and results: The systematic search resulted in 10 relevant blogs. Participants were aged between 26 to 69 years old, lived in the community, were at least one year post stroke, and included six women and four men. Aphasia was a consistent thread running through the blogs affecting conversations with all parts of a person's network, and impacting on participants' sense of self. They found it more difficult to take part in family activities, and described higher degrees of dependence and changed family dynamics. Contact with friends was reduced, partly due to communication and physical difficulties. While some participants became motivated to become members of groups post stroke, contact with the wider network sometimes diminished, in part because of loss of work and community activities. An additional factor impacting on social relationships were other people's positive or negative reactions towards the person with aphasia. Finally, the blogs reflected on the importance of support they had received, both from close family and also the wider community. Conclusions: This study found that social relationships played a crucial role in people's lives following a stroke and aphasia. Nonetheless, family relationships, friendships and social exchanges within the wider social network were all substantially affected. Exploring this area through online narratives offered a rich and highly authentic source of data. The findings 3 suggest that clinicians should incorporate social approaches in rehabilitation and consider ways to foster the maintenance of social networks. The use of social media by people with aphasia should be further explored, both as a therapeutic outlet and also as a way for people with aphasia to feel connected to a wider community.