Friends Beg Dolly Parton to Slow Down, Fearful She’ll ‘Work Herself Into the Ground’ (Exclusive)

Dolly Parton has thrown herself into work in the wake of her husband Carl Dean’s death and friends fear she’s pushing herself too hard.

“Dolly simply will not stop — she’s hardly taken a breath since Carl passed away,” a source tells Examiner.

“Everyone has been begging her to slow down, but her answer is that Carl would want her to keep working, because it makes her happy,” adds the source. “But it’s very clear she’s struggling and hasn’t given herself time to grieve.”

The country music legend, who made an appearance at Dollywood less than two weeks after losing her husband of nearly 60 years, told Today in May that having her businesses to focus on has been the “best thing that could happen to me.”

Parton, 79, has been keeping herself busy with the theme park, her frozen foods line, a new book, a Broadway show based on her life and an upcoming Las Vegas residency.

“It was only a matter of time before she got sick,” the source says of the “9 to 5” singer, who was forced to cancel an appearance at Dollywood on Wednesday, September 17 while fighting an infection related to a kidney stone, per Taste of Country.

“Kidney stones are terribly painful but she will recover. The worry of course is that she won’t start taking care of herself going forward,” adds the source. “She may think she’s invincible, but she’s not.”

“It’s in her nature to push through hard times and keep smiling, and everyone admires her strength,” continues the source, “but at a certain point it becomes very unhealthy. Her friends worry that she’s going to work herself into the ground.”