For Millennials. By Millennials.
It looks like there might have been another story to Britney Spears’ hit “Lucky” than the world originally knew. The singer has spent most of her adult life in the spotlight and unfortunately, most attention she got was for the mistakes she made.
It was hard for fans to understand how the pop queen fell from the peak of her career to the pit of her public meltdown back in 2007. It was then that the tabloids started reporting that she had been suffering from mental disorders.
An editor for the People magazine spoke about her battle with bipolar disorder and postpartum depression with the Today. The Mirror also shared that Britney was prescribed Prozac before, but that she did not take it on a regular basis, which apparently made her actions even more concerning.
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Britney Spears was always vocal about her disorder
Britney Spears apparently verified her bipolar disorder and has always spoken about her fight with anxiety. A source in close terms with the singer also confirmed her diagnosis in a talk with The Mirror and said she would wake up scared during the night and usually had trouble sleeping amid her European Tour back in 2000.
Britney’s personal life, extreme professional pressures, and family history all played a part in what turned out to be a dreadful failure of a genuinely “Original Doll.” Here is Britney Spears’ heartbreaking real-life story.
A not so happy childhood
Britney told PEOPLE that she was genuinely happy when her parents Lynne and Jamie, divorced back in 2002 because they did not get along well. She also added that it was the best thing to happen to their family. She said:
“It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to my family. My mom and dad, bottom line, do not get along. When I was a baby, they argued. I wanted this to happen 10 years ago.”
Reportedly, Britney’s father, Jamie, was an alcoholic. This was one of the big reasons for his fights with his wife, Lynne, told his brother Willie. He also said that Jamie once tried to drive off with Britney after fighting with Lynne.
It is also said that Lynne tried to divorce Jamie back in 1979 because she claimed he cheated on her. But the case was withdrawn later.
“Bad Genetics”
Little Britney fled to her aunt’s neighboring trailer when her parents’ arguments were especially distressing. Sources told Us Weekly that Britney’s problems somewhat encouraged the ceasefire when Jamie got sober in and reunited with Lynne in 2010. Rolling Stone shared that Jamie’s mother committed suicide when he was 14 which might have been a reason for his problems. Britney’s old manager told a magazine:
“She is the product of some very, very bad genetics.”
Sources claimed that Britney became an artist to escape her life full of troubles. Adnan Ghalib, Britney’s ex-boyfriend told The Sun:
“Her childhood was centered around becoming a star and I feel she is determined to give her kids a real childhood, unlike what she had.”
Nominee for The Best New Artist Grammy
In 2000, Britney was also nominated for the Best New Artist Grammy. She wanted to make her parents happy so when she lost, she was really disheartened. She told Rolling Stone:
“My mom wanted me to win so bad. And my dad. I felt kind of sad that I let them down. And then I talked to them, and they were worried for me. My mom said, ‘Baby, I could care less if you win or not. I love you.”
Britney admitted that she felt lonely and torn between her life at Kentwood and Hollywood Los Angeles. She also said that she liked being reminded that she was still just very young:
“It makes me feel good when people realize I’m just a kid, because people expect so much out of me right now.”
Britney’s uneasiness with fame has not really disappeared with time. In her 2013 documentary ‘I Am Britney Jean’, Birtney Spears says that she thinks she succeeds under pressure, but that she also felt “alienated from the public” when she was always harassed by media. She also disclosed:
“I’m a shy person and I’m particularly not really made for this industry because I am so shy. It’s not something I deal with so well.”
She struggled with low self-esteem and body image issues
An insider told Rolling Stone that Britney got breast implantations at the beginning of her career. Her mother, Lynne, was allegedly encouraging of it, but Britney was very upset at the public criticism of her unexpectedly big chest.
A friend of hers told a magazine:
“When Britney saw the papers, she was crying in the bathtub uncontrollably, asking, ‘Why is everyone being so mean to me?’ It was very hurtful for her to go through something so private so publicly.”
Choreographer Darrin Henson, who repeatedly worked with Britney, described the public uproar:
“When other girls did their b**bs, they were like, ‘Yeah, I did my b**bs, move on,’ but Britney was brought up to lie about herself.”
Britney reportedly had her breast implantations removed after her natural breasts grew bigger.
It was not the only cosmetic modification Britney may have used. She also confessed to In Style that she had had lip injections and other “fun stuff,” the latter of which she did not specify.
A scarring love life
Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake, in 2000, were the pop power couple. After they broke up Justin used his “Cry Me A River” video to clearly indicate that she cheated. But she denied the allegations to PEOPLE. Justin also dipped in on their sex life and openly belittled Britney numerous times.
An attorney for Britney’s family disclosed that her family observed Britney Spears succumbed to depression and anger after she and Justin broke up. This led to more distress in her life.
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Marriage with Kevin Federline
Britney had a short-lived marriage to dancer Kevin Federline with whom she had sons, Jayden James, and Sean Preston, in 2005.
But the end of the marriage was painful for them both.
Sources told Rolling Stone that Britney started dating Kevin because he was a substitute dancer for her ex-boyfriend Justin Timberlake and she wanted to make him jealous.
Britney’s struggle with drug abuse
During Britney’s breakdown, she may have been struggling with drug abuse. Britney’s ex-bodyguard claimed that he saw her using drugs in 2007.
Although he remarked that he certainly never saw her use any substance near her kids.
PEOPLE shared that the musician was requested to undergo casual compulsory drug testing as part of her custody agreement with Kevin Federline.
During Britney’s marriage to Kevin Federline, however short-term it was, she devoted the majority of her time to looking after their sons and did not work much.
And it looks like she would not mind going back to that way of life.
The singer talked to NME in 2016 and admitted that she had contemplated quitting the industry to become a teacher.
She also told People a big reason for her Las Vegas posts was the time it presented her to be with her boys.
Even ex-boyfriend David Lucado admitted that Britney could not care less about her profession as compared to being a mom.
“If anyone knew the real Britney, they would know that she would rather be remembered for being the great mother she is rather than the artist she is. If anyone could see her interactions with her kids, they would know that there is no need for a conservatorship over Britney’s personal life.”
When Jamie Spears fell sick in late 2018, because Britney relies so greatly on her father, she took it hard. Jamie allegedly underwent a cracked colon and was hospitalized for almost a month. PEOPLE told that Jamie had undergone a second surgery for the condition in March 2019.
The conservatorship battle
Due to a lot of her mental health struggles, Britney Spears was put in a conservatorship. That means Britney is not in control of her financial assets and major decisions in her life. Many of her fans were suspicious of this and stated this is a way for her family to exploit Britney Spears.
The ‘Free Britney Campaign’ got heightened when Britney Spears herself demanded a change in her conservatorship. She doesn’t want her father to be her conservator anymore and now wants Jodi Montgomery in charge. Many celebrities are also in favor of Britney Spears taking charge of the success she herself built.