Dolly Parton Talks Health Crisis, Reveals She ‘Got Worn Down’ While ‘Grieving’ the Loss of Carl Dean

Dolly Parton dropped out of the spotlight in September after announcing she was battling health issues and needed to have “a few procedures.” But the 80-year-old country legend finally reemerged in mid-March to reveal the latest on her ongoing medical crisis.

Dolly appeared onstage in Tennessee to mark the opening of Dollywood’s 41st season and addressed her recent health challenges, which caused her to postpone her six-show Las Vegas residency from December 2025 to September 2026.

“I have not been touring, as you know. I’ve had a few little health issues, and we’re taking good care of them,” Dolly said in a clip shared by WLOS News 13.

“I just kind of got worn down and worn out, grieving over Carl [Dean, her husband of nearly 60 years who died in March 2025] and a lot of other little things going on.

“I just got myself kind of where I needed to build myself back up spiritually, emotionally and physically. But, all is good. It didn’t slow me down,” she insisted.

Dolly had to cancel her previous scheduled appearance at Dollywood in September when a bout with kidney stones led to an infection. “Dolly is a trooper,” says a source, “but even she has her limits, and she pushed herself too hard. She needed to take a break.”

Concern for Dolly grew as she became more and more cryptic about her condition. “She never specifically said what was wrong, but people assumed it was life-or-death,” says the source. “It takes a lot to make Dolly slow down. She must have gotten strict orders from her doctors.”

Then in October, Dolly’s sister Freida, 68, sent fans into a panic by telling everyone on Facebook that she’d been “up all night praying” for Dolly. Freida asked everyone to pray for her sister.

Dolly immediately insisted she’s “okay,” but then also asked for prayers.

“Again,” says the source, “it was clear something was very wrong. Even though Dolly is such a public figure and is always making herself accessible to her fans, in reality she’s an intensely private person.”

At the time, sources told the National Examiner the “Hello God” singer was even getting her affairs in order!

“Dolly is 79 and dealing with numerous issues, so she’s begun to plan her funeral,” the source told the Examiner at the time. “She knows she’s not going to live forever, and, frankly, she’s been dying of a broken heart ever since Carl died. She just hasn’t been the same.”

The couple — who met at a laundromat in Nashville — had been married for 58 years. After his passing, Dolly posted “a love note to family, friends and fans” thanking them “for all the messages, cards and flowers that you’ve sent to pay your respects for the loss of my beloved husband, Carl.”

Dolly was eternally devoted to Carl, who stayed out of the spotlight. “He is the one man in my life,” she told People in 1982. “I would love to grow old with him. If he should die first, I may never marry again. My love is that deep.”

At the Dollywood 41st celebration, Dolly reiterated how much she loved Carl. She assured fans she’s “not dating anybody” — despite recent reports that she was — and that she doesn’t see herself getting married again.

“I think Carl Dean’s waiting for me. If I should show up at the pearly gates with somebody else, he would not like that,” Dolly confessed. “He’d be saying, ‘Who’s that little pisser? You leave him outside the gates, and if the Lord wants him in, he’ll bring him. You get on in here with me.’”

Dolly’s faith in God is unwavering. “I believe He is telling me to slow down right now so I can be ready for more big adventures with all of you,” she recently told her fans, staying strong as ever.

She doesn’t see herself slowing down anytime soon, especially now that her health appears to be improving. “I’ll just drop dead onstage,” she said to Greatest Hits Radio. “Hopefully in the middle of a song I wrote.”

In all seriousness, Dolly is working on her upcoming Broadway musical, Dolly: A True Original Musical, and she reports she is “writing a couple new songs for it.”

“I’ve just been doing a lot of writing, a lot of thinking, a lot of praying and a lot of getting ready for a lot of new stuff coming up,” she says. “Be ready for me, I ain’t done!”