Martin Short opens up about nightmare' death of his daughter Katherine

"“The understanding [is] that mental health and cancer, like my wife's, are both diseases, and sometimes with diseases they are terminal. Short said. And my daughter fought for a long time with extreme mental health, borderline personality disorder, other things, and did the best she could, until she couldn't.”"

"“So, Nan's last words to me were, Martin, let me go.' And what [Katherine] was just saying [was], Dad, let me go.' Short said he had a deep desire to take mental health out of the shadows so people wouldn't be ashamed of talking about it.”"

"“Not hiding from the word suicide, but accepting that this can be the last stage of an illness, he said. Short also spoke of losing several close friends and family in the past year, including his sister-in-law, his daughter and his friends Diane Keaton, Rob and Michele Reiner and Catherine O'Hara.”"

"“Katherine was the eldest of three children adopted by Short and Dolman. She largely kept out of the spotlight, though she sometimes attended events and walked red carpets with her father. She received a bachelor's degree in psychology and gender sexuality studies from New York University in 2006, as well as a master's in social work from the University of Southern California in 2010, and went on to work in private practice as a licensed clinical social worker.”"

Katherine Short died by suicide in February at her home in the Hollywood Hills at age 42. Martin Short said the loss has been a nightmare for the family and compared it to his wife Nancy Dolman’s death from ovarian cancer in 2010. He described mental health conditions as illnesses that can become terminal, noting Katherine’s long struggle with extreme mental health and borderline personality disorder. He said he wants mental health taken out of the shadows so people feel able to talk about it, without hiding the word suicide. He also spoke about multiple losses in the past year, including close friends and family. Katherine earned degrees in psychology and gender sexuality studies and later a master’s in social work, working as a licensed clinical social worker.

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