Sinead O'Connor's music became her therapy after 'traumatic' childhood
Fans of Sinead O'Connor have been left devastated by the news of the singer's death, aged 56, just 18 months after her 17-year-old son tragically took his own life.
The Irish star, who was best known for her hit Nothing Compares 2 U, rose to fame in the late 1980s and early 1990s, making headlines around the world for her outspoken social and political views.
And while many may have coveted her fame, behind the scenes her life was much darker than many might have expected with the talented musician reportedly having a "traumatic" past, claiming she'd been psychologically, physically, and sexually abused by her mother, Marie, during her childhood.
A Sky documentary about O'Connor titled Nothing Compares - which was scheduled to be shown on July 29, before the tragic news broke - sees the singer open up about her suffering as a child and explains how music became a form of therapy for her.
The singer spoke openly about her 'traumatic' childhood (NY Daily News via Getty Images)O'Connor recalls in the programme how her mother once made her live in their garden "24/7 for a week or two" when she was just eight years old and told how she would be "screaming, begging her to let me in". This experience is said to have inspired her song Troy from her 1987 debut album, The Lion and the Cobra.
Sinéad O’Connor, 56, has died 18 months after her son's tragic death
"I spent my entire childhood being beaten up because of the social conditions under which my mother grew up," she continues. "There was no therapy when I was growing up so the reason I got into music was therapy. It was such a shock for me to become a pop star, it's not what I wanted. I just wanted to scream."
Speaking to PEOPLE in 2012, she went on to compare her home life to a "torture chamber" and she also previously told The Guardian how as she got older, her mother encouraged her to steal and she became addicted to shoplifting. As a result, she ended up getting caught and was sent to a religious institution in Dublin for 18 months when she was just 15.
O'Connor opened up about her time at An Grianán Training Centre in an article in the Washington Post in 2010, writing: "When I was a young girl, my mother -- an abusive, less-than-perfect parent -- encouraged me to shoplift. After being caught once too often, I spent 18 months in An Grianán Training Centre, an institution in Dublin for girls with behavioural problems, at the recommendation of a social worker.
"An Grianán was one of the now-infamous church-sponsored 'Magdalene laundries,' which housed pregnant teenagers and uncooperative young women. We worked in the basement, washing priests' clothes in sinks with cold water and bars of soap. We studied math and typing. We had limited contact with our families. We earned no wages. One of the nuns, at least, was kind to me and gave me my first guitar."
She claims she was abused by her mother for years (Kim Haughton/REX/Shutterstock)
She found therapy in her music (Sipa/REX/Shutterstock)O'Connor was able to discover her passion for music while at the institution and it's reported that one of her teachers helped her get her first break, performing at a wedding. While singing, she captured the attention of the drummer from an Irish band called Tua Nua and the pair teamed up to write a song.
However, she has previously described her stay at An Grianán as being filled with "agony" and "terror". In an article from SPIN Magazine in 1990, she's quoted as saying: "I have never - and probably will never -experience such panic and terror and agony over anything like I did at that place."
Despite enduring all of this, O'Connor claimed that she had been able to forgive her mother, who died in a car accident in 1985, telling PEOPLE: "I forgive my mother; she just wasn't well." She expanded on this to the Guardian, adding: "I think she was an evil person. When I look at photos of the woman she was before she got married, she was a joyful, gleaming, happy young woman, and I feel something possessed her. It was the devil in her."
While O'Connor may have gone on to build a successful career and found therapy through her music, her adult life was still plagued with suffering as she struggled with her mental health. She spoke openly about how she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and had suicidal thoughts.
In 2012 she cancelled a tour saying that she had suffered a "very serious breakdown", and then in November 2015, posted a message on Facebook saying she had taken an overdose at a hotel in Ireland. Her mental health had taken a nose dive after one of her children became seriously ill. O'Connor had also undergone a radical hysterectomy and went through "surgical menopause" as a result.
A few years later in 2018, it seemed like O'Connor had found some peace through religion after converting to Islam and adopting the name Shuhada’ Sadaqat. She said at the time: "Christianity lied to me as an Irish person. Christianity did nothing but rape the people of Ireland, metaphorically and literally. That's why I like Islam. Because I can take the things I embraced with me. Jesus is still there but it's the Jesus that makes sense to me."
Sinead O'Connor's heartbreaking final post before tragic death at just 56
However, in an interview with the Guardian in 2021 she revealed she had spent the best part of six years at a psychiatric hospital and then in January 2022 her family was struck by tragedy when her 17-year-old son Shane was found dead. The mum-of-four described him as being "the love of her life" in one of her final social media posts.
Following the news that Sinead had passed, her family said in a statement on Wednesday evening: "It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinead. Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time."
*If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email [email protected] or visit their site to find your local branch
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