The princess still enjoyed the party life, but heavy smoking and drinking was damaging her health.
She had migraines, laryngitis, bronchitis, hepatitis and pneumonia. In 1985 she had part of her lung removed.
But she kept smoking even though she knew it was bad.
She was also spending more time at her holiday home on Mustique in the Caribbean. People complained that she preferred to party than do her royal duties.
In 1998 she suffered her first stroke and the next year she badly burned her feet in the bath.
She had two more strokes in 2000 and 2001 which damaged her sight and left her partly paralysed.
Sadly, she died in her sleep at the age of 71 on 9 February 2002 after another stroke which caused heart problems.