Dolly Parton Opens Up About “Hard Times With My Health” In New Update
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On Tuesday, August 25, news broke that country music superstar and actress Dolly Parton passed away at age 80.
Her nephew Bryan Seaver shared a statement on behalf of the rest of Dolly’s family.
“I am representing the Parton and Owens family today announcing the passing of my aunt, Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean. Sister, sis, Aunt Granny to one generation and Gigi to the next.”
Our thoughts and prayers are with Dolly’s family and friends at difficult this time.
** Original article **
Over the past several months, fans have seen a lot less of Dolly Parton. The country superstar has taken a major step back to focus on herself after dealing with some health problems.
Fans first learned about Dolly’s health issues in the fall of 2025, when she had to cancel her Las Vegas residency to focus on her well-being. The “9 to 5” singer hasn’t gone into detail about exactly what she’s getting treatment for, but she has mentioned issues with kidney stones, as well as her immune and digestive systems.
After that, she began canceling smaller appearances, which only made fans more worried about how she was doing.
Dolly publicly addressed the growing concern when rumors about her health started getting out of hand. In October, she shared a video message to clear up some of the confusion about what was really going on.
“I’m not dying!,” she said. “There’s just a lot of rumors flying around. But I figured if you heard it from me, you’d know that I was okay. I ain’t done yet…I don’t think God is through with me, and I ain’t done working’.”
Dolly’s most recent cancellation came just over a week ago when she was supposed to be at Dollywood to introduce the theme park’s newest ride, NightFlight Expedition. Instead, she recorded a video message for everyone there.
“Sometimes I get a little dizzy and I get dehydrated,” she explained. “So my Nashville doctors have kind of clipped my wings and said, ‘You’re not traveling this week.’ So I guess if your doctor tells you ‘You ain’t travelin’ this week,’ you ain’t travelin’ this week.”
On top of everything else, Dolly is still grieving the loss of her husband, Carl Dean. Carl died in March 2025 at the age of 82.
In a recent interview with PEOPLE, Dolly gave a health update, admitting she’s had “hard times with my health” since caring for Carl during his final days.
“I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl,” she told the outlet.
She also pointed out that this isn’t the first time she’s dealt with health problems, even if it may seem that way to fans. She says that she was “down for several months with female issues” back in the 1980s.
The only difference is that her struggles are more publicized this time around.
“It’s not like I haven’t been through hard times with my health,” Dolly said. “But I think because we live in a 24/7 world with social media, everything gets magnified in ways it wasn’t years ago. I used to joke that I was the Queen of the Tabloids, but now I guess I can say I’m the Queen of Social Media AI! Seriously, though, even though I’m still healin’, I’m still workin’.”
Dolly Parton Is Still Working Hard. She Has A Few Major Projects In The Works
Dolly may not be in the public eye as much these days, but she’s still working hard behind the scenes on plenty of new things for her fans.
For starters, she’s putting the final touches on her SongTeller Hotel in Nashville. She also recently announced she’ll open the Life of Many Colors Museum, which will be the “largest exhibit celebrating her life anywhere in the world,” according to its official website.
Additionally, Dolly’s Broadway musical will have its opening night on January 19, 2027.
