Shannen Doherty's mother talks grief: 'A child should never go before a parent'

Shannen Doherty's mother, Rosa Doherty, is speaking out about the experience of losing her daughter to cancer in July.

The mother of the "Beverly Hills, 90210" actress shared her grief on the Monday episode of "Let's Be Clear with Shannen Doherty" podcast which was formerly hosted by Shannen Doherty herself.

"A parent should never go, you know, last longer than a child," said Rosa Doherty.

"A child should never go before a parent, and it's things we have no control of," she added on the episode with Doherty's good friend Chris Cortazzo.

Of her daughter's death, Rosa Doherty said she was leaning on her faith.

"My faith just tells me it's all in God's hands. And that's how Shannen felt, and that's how she lived her life," she said.

Rosa Doherty also reflected on the final weeks she was able to share with her daughter, calling them "a gift."

"She moved me into a room next to her, closer to her, and then eventually... one night she said, 'Mom, will you come sleep with me," she said.

"That was such a gift for me, that I had in those final weeks,"she said. "It's like I could lay there, I could hear her breathing, and I could feel her.”

Editor’s Picks

Tori Spelling on how friend Shannen Doherty helped her find her power

Holly Marie Combs and more pay tribute to Shannen Doherty after death at 53

Shannen Doherty, 'Beverly Hills, 90210' and 'Charmed' actress, dies at 53

"It was a gift. It's like a gift she gave to me," she said.

Shannen Doherty died at the age of 53 on July 13 after a years-long battle with cancer.

"The devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as well as her dog, Bowie," a representative said in a statement at the time of her death.

In January, Doherty, who often shared updates on her cancer battle publicly, said on her podcast that she'd recently begin a new, unspecified cancer treatment infusion, saying it had begun "breaking down the blood-brain barrier," enabling the treatment to get to her brain.

"I don't want to die," Doherty told People magazine in December 2023. "I'm not done with living. I'm not done with loving. I'm not done with creating. I'm not done with hopefully changing things for the better. I'm just not -- I'm not done."