Friday, July 26 was the one-year anniversary of the passing of singer Sinéad O’Connor, and new details on her death were released promptly. Reporters for The Irish Independent obtained O’Conner’s death certificate as soon as it became available, revealing that she died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) as well as asthma. Previous reports said only that O’Connor died of “natural causes.”
O’Connor passed away at home last summer in London at the age of 56. Her death was not treated as suspicious by authorities but details on her passing were slow to go public. Coroners now confirm that O’Connor had a respiratory tract infection which exacerbated her underlying conditions and ultimately claimed her life. This is a relief to many friends and fans who previously voiced concerns about O’Connor’s mental health before her passing. It also confirms that drugs and alcohol were not involved in her death.
O’Connor had a long and well-documented history of mental health struggles. She was a strong advocate for mental health care and she was praised for sharing her experiences in a way that could help others coping with similar issues. In 2007, O’Connor appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show where she disclosed a previous suicide attempt.
After surviving the incident, O’Connor said she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and was able to get better treatment. would later say that she had been misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder, but that she had been more reliably diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, agoraphobia and complex post-traumatic stress disorder. She also sought treatment for addiction in order to stop using cannabis.
O’Connor had a similar discussion with Phil McGraw in 2017, telling the TV host about several past experiences with suicidal thoughts and the treatments that had helped her survive. She thanked doctors and psychiatrists, including the staff at an inpatient hospital where she said she stayed on and off for six years.
In spite of struggles like these, O’Connor was one of the pre-eminent political voices in the music industry for decades. She used her work to tackle social issues including women’s rights, racism and child abuse. Perhaps her most famous moment came in 1992 when she criticized Pope John Paul II and the Catholic Church during a live performance on Saturday Night Live. This was considered one of the first mainstream critiques of the church’s systemic role in shielding child abusers from consequences.
O’Connor inspired a generation of artists that followed her and a generation of peers that rose to prominence alongside her. This update on her cause of death has inspired some fresh commentary on her life and career on social media. O’Connor’s music is available on most major streaming apps, and her memoir, Rememberings, is available in print, digital and audiobook formats.