Ellen DeGeneres' mother, Betty DeGeneres, has reportedly been diagnosed with dementia. The comedian opened up about her 94-year-old mother's diagnosis during her recent stand-up comedy set at New York City's Radio City Music Hall on Aug. 1, a source revealed to In Touch Weekly .
"My whole identity used to be wrapped up in that show, and my mother's identity used to be being Ellen's mom, and now I don't have a show and she doesn't know she's my mother," DeGeneres reportedly told the crowd. DeGeneres said that her mother doesn't know she has dementia and said she probably "thinks I'm Kelly Ripa." DeGeneres did not provide further comment during the show, and it is unclear when exactly Betty was diagnosed.
This is not the first health crisis Betty has faced. She was previously diagnosed with breast cancer when she was in her mid-40s and DeGeneres was 16. Previously reflecting on her mother's private battle with the disease, DeGeneres told USA Today in 2017 that "everything was a dirty little secret back then." Betty ultimately underwent a mastectomy, something that her daughter recalled "was not spoken of. She tried to shield me from it a little bit, but she needed my help with recovery and physical rehabilitation. It bonded us even more."
DeGeneres revealed that it was during this period that her stepfather began to sexually abuse her, telling David Letterman during an appearance on My Next Guest Needs No Introduction that "he told me when she was out of town that he'd felt a lump in her breast and needed to feel my breasts because he didn't want to upset her, but he needed to feel mine."
DeGeneres reportedly reflected on that painful ordeal during her recent stand-up show, revealing to the crowd that she went into show business "to heal my childhood wounds. I thought if I can make people like me, then I'll be happy."
Marking her return two years after her namesake talk show ended amid allegations of being a toxic workplace, DeGeneres' show was described by In Touch 's source as a "coming clean" and a "redemption tour and a confessional." The former talk show host is said to have revealed "the truth behind all the rumors, including some jaw-dropping secrets she hid from the world." The source also revealed that those attending the show were required to lock their phones, sharing that "it would make sense that she's extremely paranoid after all the things people have done and said behind her back. In general, though, she seems to have worked through a lot of her issues."
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