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Shanna Ferrigno

@shannaferrigno

15.6K

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1819

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Wife/Mom of B/G twins
Slangin Natural Hormones
Fuck Alzheimer’s @carlas_turn
Host of @saucy.not.bossy

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My mom, Carla, loved being a Glamma. It was one of her greatest joys.

I never really had a grandmother of my own. By the time I was old enough to know my Grandma, Alzheimer’s had already taken so much of her. Then this disease came for my mom, too young, and while my kids were still so little.

That’s the part that makes my heart ache. My twins will mostly know their Glamma through the stories I tell and the pictures we keep. And my daughter, who is so much more of a girly girl than I ever was, is exactly the little girl Carla would have savored. Their dress-up days, their lipstick, their giggles. I can see it so clearly, the way it should have been.

That’s why I fight. That’s why I advocate. For her, and for every family living this right now.

An estimated 7.4 million Americans 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s in 2026. That’s about 1 in 9 people over 65.

If you’re just starting this journey, somewhere in the middle, or walking through the end of it, I made something for you. @carlas_turn has free downloadable caregiving guides at CarlasTurn.com.

You are not alone. @carlas_turn is here for you. 💜

xShanna

#carlasturn #alzheimersassociation #dementia #teamcarla #dementiasupport

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| The memories may soften with time. The love never does 💜

And I know this to be true in my own life, too. My dad may no longer be here, but the love between us hasn't changed. The way he raised me, the values he passed on to me, and everything he taught me are still part of who I am today. In so many ways, I carry a little piece of him with me every single day, and I hope he can see how I'm doing my best to navigate life, just as he taught
me 🤍

Wishing everyone a good start to the week! Mine comes with a little countdown because it's FINALLY my last work week before my trip to LA next week. I especially can't wait to be back in my happy place Santa Monica. It may be just for one week but it's always the highlight of my year. And God knows I need it. It's been a mentally exhausting year. Just a few more days to get through 🌴☀️🤍

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#CarlasTurn #TeamCarla #CarlaFerrigno #LouFerrignoJr #ShannaFerrigno

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We fund 🚀 to Mars. Meanwhile, millions of families are holding up dementia care on their own, for FREE.

$446 billion a year. That’s what unpaid dementia caregivers give this country. It’s more than 18 times NASA’s entire budget.

I know what’s behind that number because I lived it. Five years caring for my mom, Carla, while raising two little ones. The 2 a.m. wake-ups. The doctor’s appointments. The same questions, asked again and again. The guilt. The ❤️.

If you’re in it right now, I see you. What you’re doing matters, even when no one’s counting.

@carlas_turn has free step-by-step guides to make the hard days a little easier. Link in bio. 💛

Tag a caregiver who deserves to hear this today.

#dementiacaregiver #alzheimers #caregiversupport #carlasturn #teamcarla

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Let’s get LOUD 📣

She left school. Her education, her sense of safety, her future all got turned upside down. And some of them reportedly got a writing assignment.

This is exactly why women don’t come forward. They watch this happen over and over: the system shrugs, the school hides behind privacy rules, and everyone waits for the news cycle to move on.

Well, I’m not moving on.

I’m a mom raising a daughter AND a son, and I am done with “boys will be boys.” Boys become men. Men make choices. And every person in that house who knew what was happening and said nothing made a choice too.

So let me say this as loudly as I can to every woman carrying a story she’s never told:

IT WAS NOT YOUR FAULT.
IT IS NOT YOUR SHAME.

Not the drink. Not the outfit. Not the party. Not the silence afterward. The shame belongs to the person who did it and to everyone who protected them. Hand it back. It was never yours.

Mamas raising sons: this is on us too. Teach them that “no” is a full sentence. Teach them that unconscious means NO. Teach them that if they stay quiet, they are part of the problem.

#rapeculture #cornell #saucynotbossy #shannaferrigno

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7 years ago today, I had my wedding ceremony. And my mom made it one of the most beautiful days of my life.

She helped me find my dress. She gave a speech that I’ll never forget. She never once made the day about her — she just showed up for me, fully, the way she always did. She met my mother-in-law, my sisters-in-law, and my brother-in-law for the first time and lit up like a kid. She doted on my husband like he was already hers. And her own dress? She pulled it straight out of her closet — something she’d worn to an event a year before — because that’s who she was. Effortless. Present. She never demanded the spotlight — it just loved her.

She loved that dress so much, it’s the one she was buried in. Along with her favorite faux fur coat. Because even in the end, she was still herself.

The last few years were hard. Alzheimer’s took the mom who never needed rules and turned me into someone who had to make them — someone she sometimes saw as controlling instead of protecting. That’s one of the cruelest parts of this disease: the people fighting hardest to keep you safe become the people you push away. I carried that. Some days I still do.

But before all of that, she was independent. Strong. The kind of support system you don’t realize you have until you’re standing in a wedding dress she helped you pick, watching her steal nobody’s thunder and everybody’s heart.

This is why @carlas_turn exists. For the daughters learning to be the protector when you never wanted the job. For the caregivers who miss who their person used to be, even while loving who they’ve become. You’re not alone in the hard days — and you’re not wrong to hold onto the beautiful ones too.

Link in BIO for free downloads ⬆️ xShanna

#alzheimers #alzheimersawarenessmonth #caregiving #anniversary #carlasturn

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| Alzheimer's affects millions of people worldwide - not only those living with the disease, but also the families, friends, and caregivers who walk beside them every day.

Today, on World Alzheimer's Day, I'm thinking of Carla Ferrigno, of Shanna and Lou, and of the countless families navigating this disease every day.

From everything Shanna and Lou have shared, I've learned that Carla dedicated so much of her life to helping others find their voice and making sure their stories mattered. The more I learn about her, the more I realize what a blessing it was to have someone like her in this world.

I never had the privilege of knowing Carla personally, but I'm certain I could have learned so much from her.

Her compassion, strength, and commitment to helping others continue to inspire people far beyond those who knew her personally.

Through @carlas_turn, that legacy lives on by supporting families, caregivers, and Alzheimer's awareness.

Alzheimer's may change memories, but it cannot erase the love, wisdom, and impact a person leaves behind. Those are valuable lessons Carla's Turn reminds us of, and they continue to reach and inspire others.

And I think that's something really beautiful 💜

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#WorldAlzheimersDay #AlzheimersAwareness #CarlasTurn #TeamCarla #CarlaFerrigno

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Nearly 13 million people in this country are caring for someone with Alzheimer’s or dementia right now. Unpaid. Unseen. Often alone in it.

Last year alone, that care added up to more than 19 billion hours — worth over $446 billion. 😵‍💫

Family caregivers are quietly running a system worth almost half a trillion dollars a year, and most of them don’t even call themselves “caregivers.” They call themselves daughters. Sons. Spouses. People who just showed up.

By 2050, the cost of this disease is projected to hit nearly $1 trillion. The need isn’t shrinking — it’s exploding. And still, most caregivers are figuring it out with zero training, zero roadmap, and a loved one who doesn’t always recognize them anymore.

That’s exactly why @carlas_turn exists. My mom gave everything to the people she loved — and when it was my turn to care for her, I learned fast that nobody hands you a manual. So I’m building the one I wish I’d had. Free. Step by step. One hard topic at a time.

If you’re in it right now — the shower fights, the sundowning, the 2am wandering, the grief that starts before they’re even gone — you are not alone, and you are not failing. You’re one of 13 million. Let’s make this easier for each other.

💜 Link in BIO , grab the free guides, share this with someone who needs to know they’re not the only one.

#carlasturn #alzheimersawarenessmonth #caregivingsupport #careeradvice #teamcarla

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My mother was raised in a bar.

If you asked her about her childhood, that’s exactly how she’d put it.

She grew up watching what alcohol could do to people—to their judgment, their bodies, their families, their spirits. So she rarely touched it herself.

Not because she was afraid of it.

Because she respected what she had seen it do.

That choice mattered.

In 1967, my mother was set up on a blind date that ended at #billcosby house. The man she was with was a friend of Cosby’s. When Cosby offered her a drink, she said no.

When he tried to force himself on her, she was clear-headed enough to fight back and 🏃‍♀️

She survived that night.

And for years, she carried it quietly.

Eventually, she stopped carrying it alone.

She began speaking publicly and advocating for women whose stories had been dismissed, questioned, or ignored. She kept showing up. She kept using her voice. She understood that sometimes advocating for yourself is hard enough—and sometimes you have to use your voice for someone who can’t.

That was my mother. 👑

She spent much of her life standing up for people who needed someone in their corner.

Now, it’s my turn.

Alzheimer’s took so much from my mother. But it doesn’t get to take what she taught me.

I know what it means to watch someone lose their voice.

I know what it means to become an advocate when you never asked for the job.

And I know how many families are trying to navigate this disease while exhausted, overwhelmed, grieving, and fighting to be heard.

That’s why we created @carlas_turn

To turn grief into movement.

To advocate for families and caregivers who are doing the impossible.

To support Alzheimer’s research and the people living through this disease.

My mother spent her life making sure other people’s stories counted.

Now I’m going to make sure hers does, too.

This is Carla’s Turn.
And now, it’s mine. 💜

#CarlasTurn #Alzheimers #alzawarenessmonth #caretakersupport @nymag

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62% of people with mild cognitive impairment never get a formal dementia diagnosis.

It’s World Alzheimer’s Month, and that stat is exactly why we’re talking about this now.

Most families aren’t dealing with a “diagnosis” — they’re just living it. Watching mom repeat the same question. Noticing your husband can’t follow the shower routine he’s done for 70 years.

Realizing your wife gets lost driving a route she’s taken a thousand times. And quietly wondering if you’re the only one who doesn’t know what to do.

You’re not.

Almost nobody starts out knowing what to do. There’s no manual handed to you when someone you love — a parent, a spouse, anyone — starts slipping.

That’s why @carlas_turn exists — free, real guides for exactly the moments no one prepares you for. Not clinical. Not preachy. Just what actually works, from someone who’s been in it.

When you know better, you do better. Go get the guides at carlasturn.com. 💛

#WorldAlzheimersMonth #carlasturn #alzheimersawarenessmonth #teamcarla #alzheimers

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| September is World Alzheimer's Month 💜

For many people, Alzheimer's is more than a diagnosis. It's watching someone they love slowly change while still holding on to the person they've always been.

Through Carla's story and @carlas_turn, I've learned more about this disease than I ever would have otherwise. That's why I'm using this month to help raise awareness, even in a small way.

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#AlzheimersAwarenessMonth #Alzheimers #CarlasTurn #EndAlz

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63 million caregivers in the U.S.

Behind every number is a person who is exhausted, overwhelmed, grieving, trying to hold it all together—and often putting their own life completely on pause. 🥺

I know this because we lived it with our mom, Carla. ❤️

Caregiving can be beautiful, heartbreaking, isolating, and fucking hard. And most of us aren’t prepared for what comes with caring for someone we love through Alzheimer’s or dementia.

That’s why @carlas_turn exists.

We’ve created FREE resources and downloads to help you navigate caregiving at every stage—from the early days to the really hard ones.

You don’t have to figure it all out alone.

Go to CarlasTurn.com and download the resources. Join our community. Share them with someone who needs them. ❤️

For Carla. For caregivers. For all of us who love someone with Alzheimer’s.

#CarlasTurn #Alzheimers #CaregiverSupport #DementiaCare Caregivers

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| I always enjoy reading the memories Shanna and Lou share about Carla 🤍

Reading words like these makes it easy to understand how loved Carla was and why they speak about her with so much admiration.

It's wonderful to see Carla's legacy continuing through @carlas_turn and the support they provide to families navigating Alzheimer's.

You can always count on my support 💜🤍

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#CarlasTurn #CarlaFerrigno #TeamCarla #ShannaFerrigno #LouFerrignoJr

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