Sinead O’Connor Cancels Shows to Seek Trauma and Addiction Treatment
After opening up about her mental health battle, Sinead O’Connor has postponed her 2021 tour in order to enter a year-long treatment program for trauma and addiction.
“The Nothing Compares 2 U” singer, 53, took to Twitter to share that 2020 had been the culmination of six years of suffering, and that now she is ready to get help.
“Message for folks who have tickets for next year’s shows: Those shows are being postponed until 2022 so that I may go into a one-year trauma and addiction treatment programme because I had a very traumatic six years and this year was the end of it but now recovery starts,” she wrote.
In a series of follow-up tweets, O’Connor explained that she “grew up with a lot of trauma and abuse” from which she has never fully healed, but was hopeful the treatment program would allow her to address her historic difficulties.
In her posts, O’Connor said she had this year become addicted to “a drug other than weed” (which she had been addicted to for 34 years) after the death of “someone beloved”.
She also said she experienced trauma due to the illness of one of her children.
O’Connor apologized for postponing the shows, adding that she now has to face living through the illness of one of her children, who has since recovered.
“The child is thriving now thank God,” she wrote, “but the mum needs TLC.”
The singer added that even though the music industry can be “a very unforgiving place for artists who need to postpone due to emotional or mental health issues,” by going to rehab now, she would face a brighter future as a performer.
“If taking this step means my career is over then so be it,” O’Connor wrote, then cited the American poet Mary Oliver: “I must save the only life I can.”
The iconic singer has also said that she is still planning to publish a memoir in 2021.
