Sinéad O'Connor has publicly battled with mental illness in the past, and in a recent video, she opened up about her ongoing struggle.
In a clip posted late last week (August 3), the Irish-born singer addressed her followers, revealing that she's currently living alone in a New Jersey motel room.
"I'm now living in a Travelodge hotel in the arse end of New Jersey," she said in the video. "I'm all by myself and there's absolutely nobody in my life except my doctor, my psychiatrist, the sweetest man on Earth who says I'm his hero. That's about the only fucking thing keeping me alive at the moment. The fact that I'm his bloody hero. And that's kind of pathetic."
She goes on to address the stigma surrounding mental illness, seemingly directly addressing her family, whom she cut ties with in November 2015.
"Mental illness is a bit like drugs. It doesn't give a shit who you are," she said. "Equally you know what's worse is the stigma doesn't give a shit who you are. All the people who are supposed to be loving you and taking care of you are treating you like shit."
In the tearful message, O'Connor continued: "I'm fighting like all the millions I know to stay alive everyday which I'm doing because I love the people that are doing this to me. I'm not staying alive for me. If it was me I'd be gone straight away back to my mom. I've walked this Earth alone for two years now as punishment for being mentally fucking ill and being angry that nobody would fucking take care of me, specifically for being suicidal and being angry. Everybody's so afraid of an angry woman."
After posting the address of the Travelodge she was staying at, the South Hackensack, NJ police captain Robert Kaiser told the Associated Press that a welfare check had been conducted, but O'Connor wasn't in her room at the time. She is no longer staying at the given address, and police do not know where she is currently living. A subsequent conversation via Facebook comments indicates that she may be staying with an acquaintance in Toronto.
This morning (August 8), a new Facebook message was posted on behalf of O'Connor, claiming that the singer is safe and not currently suicidal.
O'Connor's initial video post can be viewed in its entirety below.
If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can access information about 24-hour crisis centres across Canada here.
In a clip posted late last week (August 3), the Irish-born singer addressed her followers, revealing that she's currently living alone in a New Jersey motel room.
"I'm now living in a Travelodge hotel in the arse end of New Jersey," she said in the video. "I'm all by myself and there's absolutely nobody in my life except my doctor, my psychiatrist, the sweetest man on Earth who says I'm his hero. That's about the only fucking thing keeping me alive at the moment. The fact that I'm his bloody hero. And that's kind of pathetic."
She goes on to address the stigma surrounding mental illness, seemingly directly addressing her family, whom she cut ties with in November 2015.
"Mental illness is a bit like drugs. It doesn't give a shit who you are," she said. "Equally you know what's worse is the stigma doesn't give a shit who you are. All the people who are supposed to be loving you and taking care of you are treating you like shit."
In the tearful message, O'Connor continued: "I'm fighting like all the millions I know to stay alive everyday which I'm doing because I love the people that are doing this to me. I'm not staying alive for me. If it was me I'd be gone straight away back to my mom. I've walked this Earth alone for two years now as punishment for being mentally fucking ill and being angry that nobody would fucking take care of me, specifically for being suicidal and being angry. Everybody's so afraid of an angry woman."
After posting the address of the Travelodge she was staying at, the South Hackensack, NJ police captain Robert Kaiser told the Associated Press that a welfare check had been conducted, but O'Connor wasn't in her room at the time. She is no longer staying at the given address, and police do not know where she is currently living. A subsequent conversation via Facebook comments indicates that she may be staying with an acquaintance in Toronto.
This morning (August 8), a new Facebook message was posted on behalf of O'Connor, claiming that the singer is safe and not currently suicidal.
O'Connor's initial video post can be viewed in its entirety below.
If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can access information about 24-hour crisis centres across Canada here.
