Dolly Parton is opening up about her ongoing health battles, revealing that she neglected her own well-being while caring for her late husband, Carl Thomas Dean. “I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl,” the 80-year-old country icon told People.
Dean passed away in March 2025 at the age of 82 after nearly 60 years of marriage. Parton acknowledged that she had recently experienced “hard times with my health,” but is determined to push through. “It’s not like I haven’t been through hard times with my health,” she said, noting that in the early 1980s, she was “down for several months with female issues”. She also reflected on how social media amplifies public concern, joking, “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’”.
Parton’s health came into focus after she was forced to cancel an appearance at her Dollywood theme park earlier in August. Instead of attending the grand opening of the NightFlight Expedition ride in person, she appeared via video from Nashville . Dressed in a pink rhinestone jumpsuit and fairy wings, she explained that her doctor advised against the trip. “Sometimes I get a little dizzy, and I get dehydrated. And I’m dehydrated,” she told fans. “So my Nashville doctor has kind of clipped my wings, saying, ‘You ain’t traveling this week’”.
The Dollywood cancellation is the latest in a series of health setbacks for the singer. In May, she announced the cancellation of her Las Vegas residency, citing health challenges that required extended recovery time. While she acknowledged that some treatments make her feel “swimmy headed,” she assured fans that “everything I have is treatable”.
