Laura Orrico on Caregiving, Grief, and Refusing to Quit: An Interview on Loss, Love, and Rebuilding

Laura Orrico’s story is one of fierce resilience: the kind built over years, not moments. It’s a life shaped by caregiving, grief, ambition, and an unwavering refusal to let hardship be the final word. From a young age, Laura learned what it meant to keep going when life changes without warning. Firstly, the loss of her father in 1985 at the age of nine. Then, later, her mother was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (and more recently, Parkinson’s).

As an adult, Laura pursued a thriving film and television acting career, a path that demands persistence, self-belief, and the ability to weather rejection without losing your sense of self. She built her career alongside her husband, Ryan Cosgrove, who also worked in the industry, until everything shifted with Ryan’s diagnosis of a brain tumour. What followed was not a short season of difficulty, but years of navigating the emotional and physical toll of caregiving, the weight of anticipatory grief, and the constant recalibration of priorities.

In the wake of profound loss, Laura channelled her skills, relationships, and industry insight into building something new: a publicity firm that would become both a professional reinvention and a way to serve others. Her company, Laura Orrico Public Relations, will be celebrating its 9th year this spring, an achievement that speaks to more than just business success. It reflects her ability to rebuild, to create stability, and to keep showing up with purpose.

When asked what helped her recognise she could step into this new lane, Laura traced it back to the career she’d already built.

Laura: “Absolutely. So, having had a career as a TV and film actress prior, that was a huge part of it.”

That pivot wasn’t just a career move; it was a response to a life that had changed shape. After returning home to Illinois after years in LA, she faced the reality of rebuilding.

Laura: “I started to worry a little bit about being alone. I had that support emotionally and financially for so long, so I could pursue that and eventually have it become my full-time career.”

Laura was approached by a celebrity friend who became her first client. While the initial ask was to be an agent/manager, Laura found herself doing more on the publicity side and realised that’s where her strengths truly lay.

Laura: “I think I’m going to be better at the publicity end.”

From there, she began building what would become her firm, one connection, one placement, one brave step at a time.

Today, Laura is known as a multi-talented film and TV actress and entrepreneur with her own publicity firm. Her career credits include guest star appearances on popular shows such as Kevin Can Wait, The King of Queens, and CSI: Miami, as well as a series regular role on Frank TV on TBS, among many films. Her work and story have also been featured in major publications, including Vanity Fair, Deadline Hollywood, USA Today, Daily Mail, Forbes, GREY Journal, and StarCentral. She has made recurring appearances on NTD News and continues to make an impact in the entertainment industry and beyond.

But what makes Laura’s story especially powerful is the way her professional life exists alongside deeply personal responsibilities. Caregiving has been a defining thread throughout her life, and she speaks about it with honesty rather than heroics.

When asked about choosing love and presence over career momentum, Laura’s answer is clear.

Laura: “I handle everything with a sense of urgency. I get things done. I think that’s where my success comes from. I don’t wait. I don’t procrastinate. I get things done. But when it came to health, I didn’t care. My priority shifted 100% to his health.”

Her story holds the truth that caregiving is not only emotional—it is logistical, consuming, and often invisible to everyone outside the home.

Laura: “It was at the very end, the last 14 months, I’d say, of his life, where I did stop working fully and took care of him full-time. In fact, the last nine months, I don’t think I left the house, but maybe five, 10 times, I stayed home with him.”

Grief, too, arrives in layers. Laura’s experience includes fertility struggles alongside the decline of her husband’s health, and she names a distinction that many widows understand immediately.

“When you lose a spouse, it’s not moving on. that’s for divorce or a breakup, but when you lose a spouse, it’s moving forward rather than moving on, if that makes sense.”

Today, Laura continues to carry responsibility in a different form as she cares for her mother while maintaining her work.

Laura: “She has MS and Parkinson’s, so I take care of her full-time, and I work full-time.”

And when life feels like too much, her approach to resilience is grounded and practical.

Laura: “Declutter your mind.”

At its core, Laura Orrico’s story is not a performance. It’s a lived experience of choosing to keep going, even when life doesn’t go as planned. It’s the story of a woman who has carried love through illness, rebuilt after loss, and continued to create, on screen, in business, and in the quiet, unseen moments of responsibility that don’t come with applause.

And finally, the question we ask every guest: what is your fierce truth?

Laura: “Nothing’s stopping me, and I will not give up, and I don’t take no for an answer. That’s something I really want.”