How Dolly Parton Really Feels About Not Having Kids Of Her Own

Dolly Parton has probably lost count of all the achievements she has racked up in her life. At one point, she thought becoming a doting mother would be among them, but it wasn't in the cards for her. Parton never had any children, even though she and her husband, Carl Dean, tried for a while. "We just assumed we would have kids. We weren't doing anything to stop it. In fact, we thought maybe we would. We even had names if we did," she told Billboard in 2014. The answer came when she was in her mid-30s.

In 1982, Parton was rushed to the hospital after collapsing onstage during a performance in Iowa. She learned she had been suffering from internal bleeding as a result of endometriosis, a condition characterized by the growth of uterus lining-like tissue outside of the organ, according to the WHO. Parton's endometriosis was severe enough that, to manage her symptoms, she had to undergo a partial hysterectomy, a surgery that removed her uterus and part of her cervix.

Parton's medical issues hit her hard. "It was an awful time for me when I realized there would be no babies," she told the Evening Standard in 2012. A product of her time, the country star held the notion that children were necessarily a key part of a woman's journey. "I thought having a child was my duty as a woman," she said. "But it wasn't meant to be." In due time, Parton embraced her life for was it was. 

After the initial shock, Dolly Parton learned to appreciate the life she had. Because Parton and her husband, Carl Dean, had no children, she was able to pursue a career unattainable for many women of her generation. "Since I had no kids, and my husband was pretty independent, I had freedom. So I think a big part of my whole success is the fact that I was free to work," she said in a 2020 episode of "The Oprah Conversation." In hindsight, she sees that she had the best of both worlds.

She became a star and was able to give her love to other kids. As one of 12 children, Parton had no shortage of siblings around. "Several of my brothers and sisters came to live with me early on in my life. I've loved their kids just like they're my grandkids, and now I've got great-grand-kids!" she told People in 2014. Besides, the "Jolene" hitmaker could apply her energy to helping other children.

Through Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, she has been promoting childhood literacy since 1995. "I always say God didn't let me have children so that all kids could be mine," she told Saga in 2023. The downward spiral she has witnessed in politics, the environment, and the economy has also somewhat put her mind at ease. "With everything that's going on, I'd hate to be bringing a child into this world right now," she said.